Lukoil's Q3 profit drops 20 pct to $2.2 billion

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's second-largest oil producer Lukoil said Friday that its third-quarter profit dropped 20 percent because of higher taxes and a slump in the ruble.

The Moscow-based company said Friday that the $570 million decline to $2.2 billion had been caused by the depreciation of the Russian ruble. This includes $340 million it spent on tax on foreign currency translation gain.

The Russian ruble, battered by turmoil on European markets, lost about 15 percent of its value against the U.S. dollar between June 30 and September 30 at the MICEX stock exchange.

Lukoil said its net income was affected by writing down the costs of drilling exploratory wells.

The …