China's petrochemical income up 9.9% Jan-July

BEIJING -- The main business income of China's petrochemical industry grew 9.9 percent to 6.60 trillion yuan ($1.07 trillion) in the first seven months of 2013, said the country's top economic planner on Wednesday.

The industry's net profit totaled 221 billion yuan, up 43 percent year-on-year, or 45 billion yuan, said the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in a statement on its website.

The NDRC attributed the profit surge to refining businesses having turned losses into a profit in the Jan-July period.

According to the NDRC, the petrochemical industry's output of crude oil, refined oil and ethylene from January to August reached 317.16 million tonnes, 195.88 million tonnes and 10.53 million tonnes, up 4.7, 5.7 and 5.6 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the industrial added value of large chemical manufacturers of raw material and products rose 12 percent from the same period last year.