PT Excelcomindo Pratama (XL), Indonesia’s third largest mobile operator by subscribers, reported that its net profit for the first six months of this year grew 15-fold on the corresponding period of 2007, driven by a doubling of its subscriber base and foreign exchange gains. XL posted net profit of IDR631.3 billion (USD69.25 million) for the January-June period, against IDR41.04 billion a year ago, while its revenue climbed 59% to IDR5.84 trillion. The operator, whose main shareholders are Telekom Malaysia (83.79%) and Emirates Telecommunications (close to 16%), said its customer base leapt 124% year-on-year to 22.9 million by 30 June, although it said increased competition was exerting a squeeze on profit margins.

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