Exploration and production companies were among the leading firms that drove the fastest growth in dividend payments during the first quarter, according to the latest tally from Janus Henderson Group plc.

The active asset manager’s Global Dividend Index showed that dividend payments in the United States rose 10.4% on an underlying basis to a record of $141.6 billion during the first three months of this year. Underlying growth adjusts for the distortion that may be caused by one-off special dividends, changing exchange rates and other events.

Nearly every U.S. company in the Janus index (99%) increased payments or held them steady, as dividends continued to be a reliable source of income growth for shareholders.

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