Australia's Caltex sees weaker H2, cautious on div

PERTH, June 26 (Reuters) - Caltex Australia Ltd (CTX.AX), the country's largest refiner, forecast weaker second-half earnings on Friday and voiced caution over its upcoming interim dividend.

The company also said its replacement-cost-of-sales operating profit, which strips out the impact of oil price fluctuations, would be between A$270 million and A$295 million in the first half, supported by higher refiner margins in Australian-dollar terms and by foreign-exchange gains.

It said it was taking a "conservative" position on its 2009 interim dividend. ($1=1.245 Australian Dollar) (Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Mark Bendeich)