Wataniya Q2 net profit slumps 69%

Wataniya, Kuwait’s second largest mobile phone operator by subscribers has reported a 69% drop in net profit for the three months ending 30 June 2010. The company made a net profit of KWD19.6 million (USD68.32 million) during Q2 2010, down from KWD63.5 million one year earlier. Net profit in 1H10 was reported at KWD35.8 million, down from KWD78.8 million in the first half of 2009. Wataniya, itself a unit of Qatar Telecom (Qtel, which will publish its Q2 results on Sunday), operates in markets including Algeria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and the Maldives.