Sinopec suffered $16.7 bln refining losses in 2008
BEIJING, June 24 (Reuters) - China's Sinopec Group, the biggest oil refiner in Asia, lost about 114.4 billion yuan ($16.7 billion) in its refining businesses last year, the company said on Wednesday.
Sinopec Group is the parent company of listed Sinopec Corp (0386.HK) (SNP.N) (600028.SS), the world's second-largest refiner after Exxon Mobil (XOM.N).
Sinopec Corp last year posted its first drop in annual profit in seven years, with full-year net profit of 29.8 billion yuan (about $4.36 billion), a little over half what it was in 2007, as soaring crude oil prices in the first half and low state-capped fuel prices squeezed margins.
Sinopec Corp received government subsidies totalling 50.3 billion yuan (about $7.36 billion) in 2008.
But the listed firm posted an 84.7 percent rise in first-quarter earnings from a year earlier as government reforms allowed it to reverse losses in its oil refining business.
Sinopec Group processed 173 million tonnes of crude (3,460,000 barrels per day) in 2008, compared with 3,399,000 bpd run by the listed firm, the company said. (Reporting by Eadie Chen and Chen Aizhu; Editing by Ken Wills) (eadie.chen@reuters.com; +8610 6627 1268; Reuters Messaging: eadie.chen.reuters.com@reuters.net))
