Japan Oil Firms Enjoy Brisk Earnings in April-Dec.

Tokyo, Feb. 14 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s four major oil distributors posted sharp increases both in sales and recurring profits in April- December 2005, buoyed by surging crude oil prices and high demand for kerosene and fuel oil stemming from the continued cold spell.

Nippon Oil Corp. , Nippon Mining Holdings Inc. and Cosmo Oil Co. benefited from accounting rules that allow them to report appraisal profits on their crude oil inventories in line with rises in oil prices.

Crude oil prices rose by about 17 dollars per barrel from the same period last year. The rise brought an inventory appraisal profit of 135.6 billion yen to Nippon Oil, 36.2 billion yen to Japan Energy Corp., under the wing of Nippon Mining, and 34.8 billion yen to Cosmo Oil.

Nippon Oil and Cosmo Oil were also helped by resources development businesses overseas, while Idemitsu Kosan Co. enjoyed brisk sales of its petrochemical products.

Following are the four major Japanese oil wholesalers’ April- December earnings on a consolidated basis, in billions of yen, with year-on-year percentage changes in parentheses:

Sales Recurring Net

Profit Profit

Nippon Oil 4,310.4 (21.7) 228.8 (40.7) 121.3 (19.1) Idemitsu 2,393.7 (15.0) 70.3 (50.9) 35.4 ( – ) Nippon Mining 2,158.6 (17.4) 136.4 (31.8) 85.7 (2.1-fold) Cosmo Oil 1,905.5 (22.3) 91.9 (2.1-fold) 47.6 (2.9-fold) Note: Nippon Mining’s earnings include nonpetroleum operations. The “-” mark in the parenthesis for net profit at Idemitsu means a loss.[EARNINGS]END