SingTel quarterly net profit rises 10.4 percent to US$609M

SINGAPORE (AP) - Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. said Tuesday its fiscal first-quarter net profit rose 10.4 percent on the back of strong sales in Singapore and increased contributions from regional mobile associates.

SingTel said n a statement net profit for the April-June quarter was 927 million Singapore dollars (US$609 million), up from S$840 million in the same quarter last year.

Operating revenue increase 10.5 percent to S$3.57 billion (US$2.35 billion) from S$3.23 billion previously.

Double digit growth at its mobile and Internet businesses in Singapore boosted revenue in its home market 10 percent from last year to 10 percent to S$1.16 billion (US$762 million).

In Australia, SingTel said its Optus subsidiary saw revenue rise 3.5 percent to 1.9 billion Australian dollars (US$1.59 billion) after a marketing campaign and a focus on raising its market share in Internet services.

Strong subscriber growth, especially at its associates in India and Indonesia, raised the post-tax profit from its regional associates 29 percent from a year ago to S$463 million (US$304 million).

Apart from its operations in Singapore and Australia, SingTel owns substantial stakes in Bharti Airtel Ltd. in India, PT Telkomsel in Indonesia, Thailand's Advanced Info Service PCL, Globe Telecom Inc. in the Philippines and Pacific Bangladesh Telecom.

In June, SingTel said it is buying a 30 percent stake in Pakistan's Warid Telecom.