Energy giant Shell has maintained the pace of its $3 billion-plus share buybacks, despite quarterly profits falling by a third in the face of falling oil and gas prices.

Shell’s second-quarter results come after the energy major announced plans to prioritize shareholder returns and ramp up the cost of savings.

Shell (NYSE:SHEL) +0.9% in Thursday's trading after reporting Q2 adjusted earnings that fell less than expected and saying it will maintain its pace of buying back $3.5B of shares in Q3, despite lower oil and gas prices that are weighing on energy company results.