Sinopec Engineering profit, shares down

China

BEIJING, March 20, 2017 – Sinopec Engineering, Sinopec’s subsidiary specialised in building chemical plants and refineries, reported a sharp drop in 2016 profits on Monday.

Revenue was down 13.5% year-on-year to CNY 39.4 billion (USD 5.71 billion) while net profit, at CNY 1.66 billion (USD 241 million), was about half that in 2015, largely on account of a slide in demand for chemical plants using coal, the group said in its annual report.

Though the firm was seeking to make the best out of an “extremely difficult market condition,” it cautioned in its filing that more pain was likely ahead.

“In 2017, it is estimated that as a result of the influence of adverse factors such as international crude oil price staying low and global industrial investment being sluggish in achieving significant growth, the production and operation situations of the refinery and chemical engineering industry will remain severe, the market competition will become fiercer, and engineering companies will continue facing higher downward performance pressure,” the report said.

In other news from China, three people were missing and 13 others were rescued on Sunday from a burning oil tanker in the East China Sea, state agency Xinhua reported. The fire was reportedly brought under control and the vessel was towed to the port of Shidao, where the incident is under investigation, Xinhua added.