SingTel full-year net profit up 4.8 percent

Southeast Asia's largest telco, Singapore Telecommunications, Wednesday reported a 4.8 percent increase in annual net profit and looked ahead to more revenue growth despite economic uncertainty.

Net profit for the year ended March 31 was 3.96 billion dollars (2.88 billion US) compared with 3.78 billion dollars a year earlier, SingTel said.

The results met company guidance and beat the average 3.77-billion-dollar net profit forecast by analysts.

Operating revenue was 14.84 billion dollars, up 11 percent from the previous year, it said, adding underlying net profit before exceptional items rose 14.3 percent to 3.68 billion dollars, supported by the firm's regional associates.

"The associates contributed 53 percent to the Group's underlying net profit, up five percentage points from a year ago," SingTel said.

In the fourth quarter, net profit rose 10.5 percent to 1.09 billion dollars boosted by a stronger Australian dollar and an exceptional gain of 153 million dollars, it said.

"We have navigated these tough markets in Singapore and Australia remarkably well as demonstrated by this set of earnings. All our businesses are performing well giving us a diversified revenue base," said Chua Sock Koong, SingTel Group chief executive officer.

"The environment remains challenging with the outlook for the global economy looking more uncertain. The Group's fundamentals are strong and we believe we have put in place strategies to continue to grow the business," Chua said.

In the home market, underlying net profit for the full year rose 14.9 percent to 2.97 billion dollars from a restated 2.59 billion dollars, on a 10.7 percent increase in operating revenue to 4.90 billion dollars, the company said.

Wholly-owned Australian subsidiary Optus reported a 4.6 percent full-year increase in underlying net profit and a 3.8 percent increase in operating revenue.

The Australian government last month said it had cancelled a multi-million-dollar deal with Optus and rural finance business Elders to build a broadband Internet network across the nation.

The Optus/Elders joint venture body OPEL failed to provide the required coverage, the government said in scrapping the 958-million-dollar (899-million-US) funding agreement.

Optus wrote down 13 million Australian dollars attributable to the cancellation, SingTel said.

"Results were strong. Better than expected," said Sachin Mittal, an analyst with DBS Vickers who cited as key reasons the improved performance from Singapore and Thailand's AIS, where SingTel has a 21.36 percent equity stake.

On Tuesday, SingTel said its Asia-Pacific mobile phone subscriber base rose almost 50 percent to 185.34 million at the end of the March quarter from a year earlier.

Compared with the December quarter, growth came in 8.0 percent higher, or a record 13.80 million new customers, SingTel said.

India's Bharti, where SingTel holds a 30.44 percent stake, and Indonesia's Telkomsel, of which it owns 35 percent, led the increases.

Bharti announced this month that it was in "exploratory talks" with the South African cellular giant MTN, Africa's leading wireless operator, that could lead to a "transaction."

SingTel also has substantial stakes in mobile companies in the Philippines, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The company said it foresees single-digit revenue growth in Singapore and Australia this year, along with double-digit earnings growth in the regional associates.

SingTel's board of directors recommended a final dividend of 6.9 cents per share.

"Dividends were weaker than expected," Mittal said.

SingTel shares closed two cents or 0.53 percent lower at 3.73 Singapore dollars while the Straits Times Index fell 0.15 percent.

SingTel is 56 percent owned by state-linked investment firm Temasek Holdings, according to the Temasek website.

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