The China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), the country's largest oil refiner, said Thursday its net profit hit 56.4 billion yuan (8.4 billion U.S. dollars) during the first three quarters this year, up 11.5 percent year on year.

Earnings per share stood at 0.651 yuan during the period, also up 11.5 percent, according to the third-quarter business report the company released Thursday.

The company attributed the profit growth to the steadily increasing demand of oil and chemical products at home amid rapid growth of the nation's economy.

Business revenues in the first three quarters hit more than 1.4 trillion yuan, up 59.8 percent year on year.

The company's oil output in the first nine months reached 34.93 million tonnes, up 1.9 percent, while natural gas output hit 8.87 billion cubic meters, up 45 percent.

During the same period, the company had refined 154 million tonnes of crude oil, up 14.4 percent.

Listed in Hong Kong, New York, London, and Shanghai, Sinopec is one of the largest integrated energy and chemical companies in China. It is China's largest producer and supplier of refined oil products, and the second largest crude oil producer.