China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), the country's largest oil refiner, said its net profits are expected to more than double in 2021 from a year earlier, owing to increased demand for petrochemical products.

Sinopec is likely to have a net profit growth of 103 percent to 122 percent last year, according to a company statement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Net profits are expected to soar by 34 billion yuan (about 5.34 billion U.S. dollars) to 40 billion yuan.

As the world's second-largest economy rebounded steadily from COVID-19 impacts, the country's demand for petrochemical products boomed last year, pushing up the company's net profits to the best level in nearly a decade, the statement noted.