(LEAD) S-Oil swings to profit in Q4 on improved cracking margin

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SEOUL, Jan. 28 (Yonhap) -- S-Oil Corp., the No. 3 oil refiner in South Korea, said Thursday that it swung to the black in the fourth quarter of last year from a year earlier largely thanks to an improvement in its refining business.

Net profit reached 81 billion won (US$67 million) in the October-December period, compared with a loss of 272 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Sales dropped 37 percent on-year to reach 3.95 trillion won in the fourth quarter, while it logged an operating income of 17 billion won, swinging from an operating loss of 249 billion won a year earlier.

S-Oil said improved cracking margins helped boost its bottom line, although valuation losses of its inventories continued.

Meanwhile, the oil refiner logged a profit of 676 billion won last year, compared with a loss of 287 billion won a year earlier.

Sales dropped 11 percent on-year to 17.89 trillion won, while its operating income hit a four-year high at 878 billion won.

Its refining business generated an operating income of 275 billion won last year on sales of 14.05 trillion won.

In 2014, the company's refining unit suffered a loss of 729 billion won due to a drop in oil prices.

S-Oil expects rising demand from Asia will continue to help refiners this year with its lubricant unit remaining highly profitable.

The company's petrochemicals unit posted an operating income of 287 billion won last year, shifting from an operating loss of 182 billion won.

sam@yna.co.kr
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