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Etisalat Q1 profit rises 7.6pc

DUBAI, April 19, 2015

Abu Dhabi-listed Etisalat reported a 7.6 per cent rise in first-quarter profit on Sunday, with its acquisition of a majority stake in Maroc Telecom having helped to lift revenue by nearly a third and its subscriber base by a fifth.

Etisalat, which operates in 19 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, made net profit of Dh2.18 billion ($593.6 million) in the three months to March 31, the company said in a statement, against Dh2.02 billion a year earlier.

Two analysts polled by Reuters had forecast that the Gulf's No.2 telecoms operator by market value would post quarterly profit between Dh2.16 billion and Dh2.47 billion.

The United Arab Emirates' former monopoly generated quarterly revenue of Dh12.91 billion, up from Dh9.9 billion a year earlier.

Domestic revenue rose 11 per cent to Dh7.2 billion, while international revenue jumped by 69 per cent to Dh5.6 billion.

The international increase was because of Etisalat's consolidation of Maroc Telecom after it bought a 53 per cent stake in the African operator for €4.14 billion last May, plus rising income from Etisalat's operations in Nigeria and Afghanistan.

Maroc Telecom, which has operations in Gabon, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Mali and this year also acquired Etisalat's subsidiaries in six African countries, reported first-quarter net profit of 1.32 billion Moroccan dirhams ($133.10 million) on Thursday, down 10.2 per cent year on year.

Etisalat had 173 million subscribers at March 31, up 19 per cent from a year earlier. 

Ahmad Julfar, group chief executive officer, Etisalat, said in a statement: “The strong financial results in the first quarter of 2015 was not only built upon our strong performance in 2014, but also provides a solid foundation for the remainder of the year. Continued growth in revenue, profits and subscribers in Q1 continues a pattern of growth that we have experienced over a long period. It is this solid foundation which allows us to move forward in confidence as the leading operator in emerging markets, delivering advancements in each of the countries we operate in.

“The expansion of our award winning Mobile Connect service extends our first in the region offering across all the majority of our operations, highlighting the leadership we are playing in the region. Mobile Connect empowers businesses and individuals by protecting identities both online and through mobile devices. It epitomises our approach to business; creating innovative solutions and providing advancement in each of the markets we operate in. It is services such as this which will determine that we remain ahead of the game.” - Reuters & TradeArabia News Service




Tags: UAE | Etisalat | Telecom |

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