Telenor raised its Q3 revenue 6% and improved its 2010 outlook due to a strong performance from its Asian units, but continuing losses at its Indian startup and hefty one-off expenses shaved its profit by half.
The Nordic operator reported revenue of 24.1 billion ($4.07b) and a better-than-expected ebitda of 7.9 billion kronor.
Sales from Asia grew 13% over the quarter. Thai unit DTAC raised its operating profit contribution 74% to 910 million kronor. Telenor owns 65% of the mobile operator.
Malaysia's DiGi, in which Telenor holds a 49% stake, reported a 34.5% higher operating profit of 576 million kronor, while the 55.8%-owned Grameenphone raised its contribution to 519 million kronor.
Telenor Pakistan posted an operating loss of 29 million kronor, but its parent said the result was better than expected following the severe floods in August.
Total subscribers from these subsidiaries increased to around 2.7 million from 2.2 million a year ago.
The Indian venture Uninor continued to soak up money as rolled out services, with losses swelling to 1.3 billion kronor from 150 million kronor in Q309.
Uninor, which began services in last 2009, added 4 million subscribers for the quarter, doubling its customer base. ARPU also increased 8% sequentially.