Private filings shared with lenders point to a standout stretch for two trading heavyweights. Mercuria generated $2.01 billion of net profit over the nine months to June, a 122% increase from a year earlier. Its equity base rose 33% in that span to $8.06 billion.
Gunvor's first-half net profit hit $909 million, up 644% from the same period a year ago. That haul exceeds all but three full-year totals in the company's history and has it tracking toward an annual outcome near its 2022 record of $2.36 billion. The year-over-year increase appears exaggerated since the first half of 2025 marked Gunvor's weakest stretch in years.
War in Iran has scrambled trade routes and prices, and the firms that physically move barrels and cargoes are seizing the moment. Some traders have been willing to ship oil through the Strait of Hormuz, taking on risk for thicker margins.
Gunvor spelled it out in its results commentary: "Performance was supported by heightened volatility and the significant reshaping of global energy trade flows following the escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East." It added, "These market dislocations created attractive arbitrage opportunities for Gunvor."
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Mercuria's surge was not just about energy. It also benefited from a tightening copper market as a push to ship metal to the US squeezed supplies elsewhere. Comparing its nine-month and half-year tallies implies it earned nearly $1 billion in the April to June quarter alone. Metals and dry bulk made up 24.4% of revenue during the period, compared with 16% a year earlier.
These windfalls largely flow to the insiders who own the businesses. Mercuria is majority owned by co-founders Marco Dunand and Daniel Jaeggi and is expanding in metals and liquefied natural gas. At Gunvor, senior traders bought out co-founder Torbjörn Törnqvist last year; the company says nearly 100 employees now hold the ownership, and no individual shareholder may own more than 8%.
Both firms are stockpiling cash instead of writing big checks. Gunvor paid no first-half dividend and said it "will not pay a dividend in 2026," as it works to restore equity after disbursing over $1 billion to Törnqvist. Neither company publishes its results; a Gunvor spokesperson declined to comment and a Mercuria spokesperson had no comment.
Rivals are riding the same wave: Glencore reported one of its best-ever half-year trading results last month, and Trafigura made $4.09 billion over the six months through March, putting it on course for a record year to September. The takeaway for everyday investors: when geopolitics reshuffle supply chains, the companies that physically source, ship and store commodities can mint profits, and owner-operators decide whether that cash shows up as dividends or stays in-house for the next swing.
