Oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) reported higher earnings for the first half of this year than the other three companies operated by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, thanks mainly to higher global crude oil and petrochemical raw material prices.
CPC’s pretax profit was NT$29.4 billion (US$962.17 million), a significant increase of 70.34 percent from NT$17.26 billion a year earlier, according to the latest data compiled by the ministry’s State-Owned Enterprise Commission.
The other three companies under the ministry’s supervision saw lower earnings, with Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar, 台糖) reporting NT$3.31 billion in pretax profit in the first six months of this year on gains from a land sale and Taiwan Water Corp (Taiwater, 台水) posting NT$222 million in pretax profit, while Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) reported a loss of NT$24 billion, widening from a loss of NT$7.1 billion over the same period last year, the data showed.
Taipower spokesman Hsu Tsao-hua (徐造華) attributed the widening loss to rising fuel prices and the higher costs of gas-fired power generation.
In related news, CPC announced that it would today cut gasoline prices by NT$0.2 and diesel prices by NT$0.3 per liter to reflect a decline in international crude oil prices last week.
The adjustment ended two weeks of price hikes, as rising concern over the US-China trade dispute affected market sentiment last week, CPC said in a statement.
Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said it would match CPC’s price cuts, effective today, citing reports that Libya might resume crude oil exports and the US might ease sanctions on Iranian oil exports.
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