Telekom reports rising profits, but market share continues to fall

Telekom Malaysia™ reported an 81% year-on-year rise in quarterly profits to MYR507.13 million (USD133.5 million) for the three months to 31 March 2004, on the back of a strong performance from its mobile arm. However, analysts greeted the announcement cautiously and warned that the company’s marginal subscriber gains could bode ill for its longer-term growth prospects. TM recorded 4.4 million subscribers at the end of the period, below consensus estimates of 4.5 million, and up just 100,000 on the corresponding year-ago figure. The earnings jump was largely the result of it booking income from Celcom for the first time in 2003-04, rather than its success in gaining initiative from rivals Maxis and DiGi.