Saudi operator STC announced a 38.5 percent drop in its net income for the first quarter to SAR 1.55 billion, compared to SAR 2.52 billion in the corresponding quarter last year. The result included a SAR 500 million impairment charge on its stake in Indian mobile operator Aircel. STC will still pay SAR 1 billion in cash dividends for Q1, representing SAR 0.5 per share. STC reported revenues up 3.7 percent year-on-year to SAR 11.47 billion, and gross profit rose 2.6 percent to SAR 6.49 billion. The subscriber base at 31 March exceeded 170 million.
In its home market, mobile customers rose 4 percent from a yea earlier, helped by expansion in the 3G and 4G networks. Wireless broadband revenues were up by 32 percent. The number of fibre customers was also up sharply, by 531 percent compared to the same period last year and 35 percent from the end of 2012. Enterprise revenues were also up 7 percent from a year earlier.
