World Kinect marine fuels segment gross profit up 86% on year for Q1 2026

New York-listed global energy management company World Kinect Corporation (WKC) on Thursday (23 April) recorded a 18% on year increase in gross profit for the first quarter (Q1) of 2026.

The company posted gross profit of USD 271.2 million in Q1 2026, 17.7% higher than gross profit of USD 230.4 million seen during Q1 2025.

Revenue for its combined aviation, land and marine segments in Q1 2026 was USD 9.69 billion, a 2.5% decrease from revenue of USD 9.45 billion in Q1 2025.

Specifically, the marine segment generated gross profit of USD 66.4 million in Q1 2026, up by 86% on year from USD 35.7 million in Q1 2026.

This was primarily driven by significantly higher bunker fuel prices, elevated price volatility, and strong execution supported by disciplined risk management in a dynamic market environment.

In total, WKC sold 3.9 million metric tonnes (mt) of bunker fuel during Q1 2026, up by 4% from 3.7 million mt of marine fuels during the similar period of last year.

“This strong performance marks our third best quarter on record for marine. We entered the quarter expecting a low price, lower volatility environment,” Jose-Miguel Tejada, Executive VP & CFO, said in a recent earnings call as quoted by Seeking Alpha.

“However, in March, conditions shifted quickly with volatility increasing sharply and average bunker prices rising approximately 70% month-over-month. By leveraging our supplier relationships and strong balance sheet, the team did what they do best and executed extremely well, supporting our customers while capturing strong risk-adjusted returns in our core resale business and in our physical inventory locations.”

He said the company is expecting marine gross profit to be lower sequentially as pricing volatility moderate for the second quarter of the year, though gross profit should be meaningfully higher year-over-year.

Photo credit: World Kinect Corporation
Published: 27 April, 2026