Saudi Aramco profit drops 44%, but $75-billion dividend survives

Saudi Aramco’s $75 billion dividend survived one of the biggest disruptions to oil markets in decades as the coronavirus pandemic and a price war sent crude prices 

Aramco will make the payout -- the largest of any listed company and almost all which goes to Saudi Arabia’s government -- for 2020 despite a slump in earnings and revenue. The dividend is a key source of cash for the kingdom, whose economy was hit after the virus hammered energy markets and shut down local businesses.

The world’s biggest oil company has taken on more debt in the past 12 months to