China Mobile Q4 profit up 37 percent (China)China Mobile Ltd , the world’s top mobile phone firm, beat forecasts on Wednesday with a 37 percent rise in quarterly profit, amid healthy subscriber growth.
Rapid growth in China’s economy, rising consumer purchasing power and the development of the rural economy are driving demand for communication services, the company said in a statement.
But some analysts said the advent of a long-awaited restructuring of China’s telecoms sector may bring in increased competition and pressure for China Mobile, which dominates the world’s biggest telecoms arena.
“As the Chinese government proceeds with the reform of the telecommunications industry, the industry landscape and competitive environment may experience certain change, creating both new challenges and opportunities,” Chief Executive Wang Jianzhou said in the statement.
As subscriber growth in China’s big cities slows, China Mobile is also battling fiercely with smaller rival Unicom to sign up more rural customers.
China Mobile posted net profit of 27.2 billion yuan ($3.85 billion) for the three months ended December 31, compared with 19.9 billion yuan a year earlier.
The result beat an average of analyst forecasts for net profit of 23.61 billion yuan, according to 27 analysts polled.
Full-year net profit rose 32 percent to 87.1 billion yuan in 2007, compared with an average forecast of 83.5 billion yuan.
