Telekom Malaysia Q1 net down 12.8 per cent
State-run Telekom Malaysia Bhd, on Thursday reported a 12.8 percent fall in first-quarter net profit on higher borrowing and operating costs and higher tax expense.
By Agencies |
KUALALUMPUR: State-run Telekom Malaysia Bhd, on Thursday reported a 12.8 percent fallin first-quarter net profit on higher borrowing and operating costs and highertax expense.
Telekom said itsdata and broadband services would post healthy growth but warned managing costsremained a challenge in the near-term. Last month, Telekom spun off its mobilephone unit, TM International, to unlock value in itsfaster-growing mobile businesses that include Malaysia's No.2 mobile operatorand operations in Indonesia, India and SriLanka.
The government lastSeptember awarded Telekom a $4.7 billion project to roll out wireless broadbandservices across Malaysia. The first phase would cost 11.3 billion ringgit, ofwhich the government will provide 2.4 billion ringgit over three years.January-March net profit was 519.7 million ringgit ($162 million) versus 595.7million ringgit a yearearlier.
Local analysts do notprovide quarterly profit forecasts. Telekom said revenue rose 10.6 percent to4.62 billion ringgit for the first quarter from a year ago, driven by higherincome from cellular, Internet, multimedia and other telecommunicationservices.
Quarter-on-quarter,revenue fell 2.3 percent, mainly on lower mobile revenue and the ringgit'sstrength against the Indonesian rupiah. Telekom's PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbkunit, Indonesia's No.3 mobile operator, said last month it doubled itsfirst-quarter net profit to almost $40 million, driven by an 82 percent rise inusers to 18.4 million.
Telekomshares, valued at around $3.6 billion, fell 5.3 percent in January-March,compared with a 14 percent drop on the main stock index. Telekom shares havefallen 11 percent this month amid worries that capital spending may be higherthan expected, crimping the company's ability to pay out dividends.
Telekom said itsdata and broadband services would post healthy growth but warned managing costsremained a challenge in the near-term. Last month, Telekom spun off its mobilephone unit, TM International
The government lastSeptember awarded Telekom a $4.7 billion project to roll out wireless broadbandservices across Malaysia. The first phase would cost 11.3 billion ringgit, ofwhich the government will provide 2.4 billion ringgit over three years.January-March net profit was 519.7 million ringgit ($162 million) versus 595.7million ringgit a yearearlier.
Local analysts do notprovide quarterly profit forecasts. Telekom said revenue rose 10.6 percent to4.62 billion ringgit for the first quarter from a year ago, driven by higherincome from cellular, Internet, multimedia and other telecommunicationservices.
Quarter-on-quarter,revenue fell 2.3 percent, mainly on lower mobile revenue and the ringgit'sstrength against the Indonesian rupiah. Telekom's PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbkunit, Indonesia's No.3 mobile operator, said last month it doubled itsfirst-quarter net profit to almost $40 million, driven by an 82 percent rise inusers to 18.4 million.
Telekomshares, valued at around $3.6 billion, fell 5.3 percent in January-March,compared with a 14 percent drop on the main stock index. Telekom shares havefallen 11 percent this month amid worries that capital spending may be higherthan expected, crimping the company's ability to pay out dividends.
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