Intense competition hurts SmarTone

Nancy Fei

SmarTone Telecommunications (0315) suffered a 3 percent decline in net profit to HK$246 million in the six months ended December, due to an intensely competitive mobile sector and sluggish economic conditions.

The company predicted that the business outlook will remain challenging in the short to medium term amid the demanding macroeconomic landscape.

Total revenue fell by 11 percent yearly to HK$3.4 billion from July to December, while average revenue per user and customer base both improved by 1 percent to HK$224 million and HK$2.65 million respectively.

Roaming revenues rose 64 percent year-on-year to 86 percent of pre-pandemic levels, thanks to a resurgence in outbound travel. The company said it will continue to stimulate growth in roaming services.

Although spectrum costs, up to HK$270 million, actually exceeded the group's overall net profit for the period, it believed that such expenses have peaked and are expected to gradually decrease moving forward.

The local telecom services provider declared an interim dividend of 14.5 HK cents a share, the same as last year.