Net profit at China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) soared a better than expected 51.36% year-on-year in the third quarter on the back of higher oil and natural gas prices, even as reported losses at its refining operations widened due to accounting changes and government price controls, the <i>South China Morning Post</i> reported. Asia's largest refiner and China's second-largest oil and gas producer, said net profit climbed to US$1.65 billion in three months to September from US$1.09 billion in the same period last year. Sinopec's share price rose 5.06% Tuesday to close at US$0.69, the highest in more than five months. The main contributor to the quarter's profit jump was the exploration and production division, where operating profit surged 25.24% to US$2.23 billion because of higher sales volumes and prices.
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