Sinopec posts 15 pct fall in Q1 profit, meets forecast

HONG KONG, April 28 (Reuters) - Sinopec Corp, Asia's largest refiner, posted a 15.3 percent fall in first-quarter profit, meeting forecasts, as a sharp improvement at its refining business was offset by declines at its upstream and chemicals businesses.

The company posted a net profit of 14.1 billion yuan ($2.25 billion) versus 16.7 billion yuan a year earlier, under international accounting standards, it said in a filing with the Shanghai bourse. The result compared with an average forecast of 14.6 billion yuan by two analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

The state-run oil giant, which unveiled a plan earlier this year to sell up to 30 percent of its massive fuel retailing business, has vowed to put more emphasis on investment quality and efficiency instead of expansion this year.

Sinopec said last month it would cut capital expenditure to 162 billion yuan this year from 169 billion yuan in 2013 - which was already seven percent lower than budget.

($1 = 6.2536 Chinese Yuan) (Reporting by Charlie Zhu; Editing by Mark Potter)