Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical sees loss in Q1

HONG KONG, April 8 (Reuters) - Chinese petroleum products producer Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co Ltd (0338.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said it would post a first-quarter loss as soaring crude oil prices increased costs despite a 247.28 million yuan ($35.3 million) subsidy from government.

"With domestic petroleum product prices under stringent State control, there has been a severe mismatch between petroleum product prices and crude oil prices," the company said in a statement late on Monday, adding this had resulted in a substantial loss in the firm's oil processing operation.

The company posted 1.07 billion yuan net profit for the same period a year ago in accordance with Chinese accounting standards. It gave no further details.

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The company on Monday posted a net profit of 1.63 billion yuan (US$232.8 million) for 2007 in accordance with international accounting standards, compared with 844.4 million yuan profit in 2006. (US$1=HK$7.8=7.001 yuan) (Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Anne Marie Roantree)