China Mobile reported positive numbers for the period from January to September, stating it is at a “critical stage of business transformation”.
In a statement, it cited “relatively high demand for resources from various fronts, including the growth of 4G business, the development of wireline broadband, the expansion of the corporate customer market, as well as the deployment of emerging business”.
The company ended September with 878 million mobile customers, compared with 867 million at the end of June 2017, of which 622 million are 4G customers, up from 594 million. It said average revenue per user of CNY60.5 ($9.14) in Q3 was up 0.8 per cent year-on-year, although it was down from CNY62.2 at the end of the June quarter.
For the nine months to 30 September, the company reported a profit attributable to shareholders of CNY92.1 billion ($13.9 billion), up 4.6 per cent over the comparable period of 2016. Revenue of CNY569.5 billion was up 4.9 per cent and telecom service revenue grew 7.1 per cent to CNY515.3 billion.
The operator said while its mobile data traffic “maintained rapid growth, with handset data traffic recording a 113 per cent increase year-on-year”, voice services continued to see pressure from over-the-top product substitution.
For its fixed broadband business, the company said: “effectively promoting the concurrent development of broadband and 4G, the group has experienced buoyant growth in this business line with ongoing enhancements to product quality and market competitiveness”.
The company made no reference to regulatory rate cuts which came into force in September.
