Some stock analysts say that the nation’s oil refining industry is estimated to have suffered heavy losses in inventory values due to a deep slide in international crude oil prices.

Dubai crude is staying under $40 a barrel while it hovered over $100 in the first half of 2014. The analysts argue that local oil refiners see the loss from the gap between the amount paid for oil in its inventory and the current low price of crude.

But ordinary citizens don’t seem to quite agree. The research reports from the financial investment sector might be coming from some “crybaby” insiders in the refining industry.

The negative outlook comes after news that four major local refiners logged collective operating profits of more than 4 trillion won ($3.43 billion) for the first three quarters of the year, the most robust performance in four years.

The low crude era has been a boon to local refiners in terms of the gross refining margin. Their margin, which has climbed to $7.50 per barrel, is expected to surpass the $8 mark early next year, according to calculators of the Singapore benchmark GRM.

So their potential inventory losses -- as some analyst say -- could be merely an assumption based on undue anxiety as long as the international crude prices do not nose-dive below $30.

If crude oil prices gradually bounce back, there is a high possibility that the inventory will bring the refiners huge gains -- as they could conduct hikes in gasoline and diesel prices for local drivers and other products for corporate clients at a rapid pace.

Many consumers have been discontent with their business practices in which they, and many gas stations, hesitate to cut retail oil prices in proportion to sliding crude prices, but hurry to raise them as soon as international crude shows signs of rebounding.

Expectations for higher dividends are also growing among shareholders of three of the four major refiners -- SK Innovation, S-Oil and GS Caltex.

The three publicly traded firms are poised to share part of their huge operating profits with employees in the form of year-end incentives.

SK Innovation plans to provide employees with performance-based bonuses, which are set to be equivalent to several times their monthly basic pay. The bonuses will likely be paid early next year.

GS Caltex recently set the figure at 500 percent of the basic salary, and S-Oil is expected to follow suit after fixing the incentive rate. Hyundai Oilbank, which does not offer incentives, may reflect the 2015 earnings in its staff’s annual salaries for 2016.

As one of the coming positive factors, the local refiners will have the opportunity of diversifying their trading partner pool as the U.S. is set to resume its crude oil exports as early as next month.

The U.S. benchmark Western Texas Intermediate is generally cheaper than Dubai crude, which makes up 85 percent of Korea’s oil imports.