NIPPON OIL SEES SHARPLY LOWER SALES AND PROFITS Nippon Oil Co Ltd <NPOL.T> predicted parent company net profit of about nine billion yen in the year ending March 31, down 10.4 pct from a year earlier, president Yasuoki Takeuchi told a press conference. Current profit for the year was estimated at 17 to 18 billion yen, down 20 to 24 pct from a year earlier, he said. Takeuchi said sales are expected to fall 40 pct to 1,700 billion yen for the fifth consecutive year-on-year drop. This year's fall was due to lower selling prices for end-users, which more than offset the yen's appreciation. The company will retain six yen dividend for 1986/87.