SINGAPORE, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) Limited, Southeast Asia's largest telecommunications operator, reported on Thursday that its net profit for the second quarter fell 5.6 percent to 972 million Singapore dollars (690 million U.S. dollars) compared with the same period a year ago.
Singtel attributed the fall in net profit to the exceptional gains recorded by Airtel in the comparative quarter. Its operating revenue for the second quarter rose 2 percent to 4.28 billion Singapore dollars (3.04 billion U.S. dollars) excluding the impact of mandated cuts to mobile termination rates in Australia. Underlying net profit for the quarter was stable and up 3 percent for the half year, said the company.
Singtel Group CEO Chua Sock Koong noted that the group's associates especially Telkomsel and Airtel performed strongly. Strategic investments in networks and spectrum are paying off as they capture new growth in customers and data usage.
"The Group's customer base increased by 3 percent to 629 million subscribers, further strengthening our position as South East Asia's largest communications company," said Chua.
Singtel also stressed that their Singapore business continued its growth trajectory, driven by demand in mobile data and ICT services, particularly cyber security.
On its outlook, Singtel said operating revenue for the group and for the core business are both expected to decline by low single digits, taking into account its first half performance and the revision in guidance for the Australian mobile service revenue.
