Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical, China's largest ethylene producer, said yesterday prices of petrochemicals are expected to continue to rise in the years to come.

The petrochemical firm reported increases in the prices of petrochemical products in July. The prices of plastic products, chemical products and chemical fibre products rose by 4 to 10 per cent, said the company's Director and Vice-President Rong Guangdao.

Vice Chairman Xu Kaicheng said the completed "Phase IV Project", the efficiency of new and improved facilities, and the continued increase of the prices of petrochemical products in China will be the key profit makers of the company.

The company announced on Wednesday that first-half net profit jumped 132 per cent to 484.06 million yuan (US$58.46 million) despite a turbulent external environment.

The company forecast a significant increase in whole-year profit.

In the first six months, Shanghai Petrochemical processed 4.12 million tons of crude oil, up 21.4 per cent from a year earlier. Its output of ethylene grew 35.74 per cent to 461,500 tons. The company's production targets for crude oil and ethylene this year are 8.4 million tons and 900,000 tons respectively, said Xu.

(China Daily August 22, 2003)