GS Caltex Corp., South Korea's second-largest refiner, said Thursday its third-quarter net profit plunged 52.8 percent from a year earlier due to inventory losses.
Net profit stood at 206.3 billion won (US$178 million) on a consolidated basis in the July-September period, compared with 436.9 billion won a year earlier, according to the company.
Operating profit tumbled 49.3 percent on-year to reach 322.2 billion won in the third quarter, with sales declining 8.8 percent on-year to 8.9 trillion won over the cited period.
GS Caltex said fluctuating international oil prices caused inventory losses in its mainstay refining business. Operating income from its refining business dropped 53.9 percent on-year to 210.9 billion won, while sales slid 6.2 percent to 7.2 trillion won in the third quarter.
GS Caltex said its petrochemical business logged an operating income of 92 billion won in the third quarter, down 33.5 percent from a year ago, while its lubricant unit's operating profit dipped 52.4 percent on-year to 19.3 billion won.
In the first nine months of 2019, GS Caltex logged sales of 24.5 trillion won, down 7.8 percent from a year ago, while its operating profit suffered a 47.7-percent on-year drop to 785.2 billion won. Net profit plunged 60 percent on-year to 341.2 billion won. (Yonhap)