Indonesia's PT Indosat said its net profit for the first half surged 137.5%, on cost cutting and solid wireless revenue growth.
The company, Indonesia's second largest operator, reported a profit of 681.9 billion rupiah ($79.8 million).
While operating expenses increased 8.1%, other expenses were slashed 70% from over 1.1 trillion rupiah to 330.6 billion. Debt also fell 10.7% to 22 trillion rupiah.
Revenue grew 4%, with mobile services revenue increasing 6.3% but fixed and other non-cellular revenue slumping 5.3%.
The company's total mobile customer base grew 25.1% year-on-year to 47.3 million, but cellular ARPU fell 15.6% to 29,290 rupiah over the same period.
The company ended the first half with 18,408 2G and 3G base stations.
Indosat CEO Harry Sasongko acknowledged that Indonesia's “competitive environment remains challenging,” but expressed confidence in the company's ability to respond and adapt to any threats.