China Telecom profit, revenue down in Jan-Sept

BEIJING - China Telecom, a leading mobile operator in China, reported drops in its profit and operating revenue in the first three quarters of this year despite an increase in service subscribers, the company's financial report said Monday.

Profits attributable to equity holders reached 18.39 billion yuan ($2.6. billion) during the January-September period, down 3.4 percent year-on-year, said the report.

Operating revenue was 282.83 billion yuan, slipping 0.8 percent over the same period last year, of which revenue from services stood at 271.48 billion yuan, an increase of 2.5 percent year-on-year.

The company's mobile subscribers totaled 330 million by the end of September, a net increase of 27.43 million. The number of 4G subscribers added 32.94 million to 275 million.

Meanwhile, wireline broadband users of the company grew by 6.87 million to about 153 million.

China's telecommunications sector posted steady performance in the first nine months, with the combined revenue of the industry hitting 991.4 billion yuan, the latest data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.