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		</div><p>Royal Dutch Shell has warned it expects to take a hit of up to $800m (€730m) in the first quarter as the coronavirus crisis and an oil price war have sent the cost of crude plummeting.</p>
<p>The oil giant said it expects “significant uncertainty” around oil prices and demand as the Covid-19 pandemic wreaks havoc on the world economy.</p>
<p>Shell said it is bracing for an impairment charge of between $400m (€364m) and $800m (€730m) in the first three months of 2020 as it lowered its oil price outlook.</p>
<p>The price of oil has crashed due to the pandemic and a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, with Brent crude falling to an 18-year low on Monday – closing at $22.76 (€20.74) a barrel.</p>
<p>Shell said: <em>“As a result of Covid-19, we have seen and expect significant uncertainty with macroeconomic conditions with regards to prices and demand for oil, gas and related products.</em></p>
<p><em>“Furthermore, recent global developments and uncertainty in oil supply have caused further volatility in commodity markets.</em></p>
<p><em>“The impact of the dynamically evolving business environment on first-quarter results is being primarily reflected in March, with a relatively minor impact in the first two months.”</em></p>
<p>But shares in Shell rose 7% amid a wider bounce-back on the FTSE 100 Index amid hopes for a Covid-19 vaccine and after early signs the outbreak may be slowing in Britain.</p>
<p>Shell also gave assurances that its financial liquidity was “strong” and that is has secured another $12bn (€10.9bn) credit facility, on top of the $10bn (€9.1bn) at the end of last year.</p>
<p>Details of its first-quarter charge come a week after Shell announced plans to heavily cut operating costs and spending proposals to help mitigate the impact of the coronavirus outbreak and tumbling oil prices.</p>
<p>The company said it will reduce its operating costs by $3bn to $4bn (€2.73bn to €3.6bn) for the next 12 months.</p>
<p>It said it will also reduce its annual spending to a maximum of 20 billion dollars (€18.2bn) for 2020 from its previous expectations of $25bn (€22.7bn).</p>
<p>Shell said there will also be a material reduction in working capital as it said the actions are intended to “reinforce the financial strength and resilience” of the business.</p>
<p>Shares in the company have more than halved in the past two months as oil prices have continued to dive.</p>
<p>Full-year figures in January revealed a 36% drop in profits to $15.3bn (€13.9bn) for 2019 after a dismal performance in the final three months of the year.</p>
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