Halliburton Co., under fire for its work in Iraq, on Wednesday posted a quarterly loss, reversing a year-ago profit, after taking a charge for a proposed asbestos and silica settlement.
The world's second-largest oilfield services company posted a net loss of $65 million, or 15 cents a share, in the first quarter, compared with net income of $43 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier.
It reported a profit from continuing operations of 17 cents per share, hurt by a charge for the Barracuda-Caratinga deepwater oil project in Brazil.
Analysts on average expected earnings of 31 cents a share, according to Reuters Research, a unit of Reuters Group Plc.
Revenue rose 80 percent to $5.52 billion, mostly because of the additional government services projects in the Middle East won by the company's KBR engineering and construction group, the largest contractor in Iraq.
Halliburton, once headed by U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, is currently under investigation for possible overcharging for fuel and meals provided to the U.S. military in Iraq. The company has denied any wrongdoing.
Looking ahead, the company is optimistic about the prospects for its oilfield services business.
"We continue to see improvement in the energy services business," said Chairman, President and Chief Executive Dave Lesar in a statement.
"While oilfield activity and pricing was essentially flat until late in the first quarter, we are beginning to see signs that customer spending and pricing for our services are improving."
