Telekom Malaysia has reported a 32% slump in net profit for 1Q18 during what the operator termed a challenging quarter.
The operator recorded a net profit for the quarter of 157.1 million ($39.4 million). Excluding the impact of higher foreign exchange gains on borrowings and trade settlements, profit would have fallen to 105.3 million ringgit.
Revenue for the quarter declined 3.9% year-on-year to 2.96 billion ringgit, due largely to a decline in voice, data and other service revenue. This was partly offset by an increase in internet revenue.
“In 1Q 2018, we saw challenges across all our customer clusters which affected our performance,” Telekom Malaysia group CEO Dato' Sri Mohammed Shazalli Ramly said in a statement.
“For the rest of this year, we remain guided by our two key strategic thrusts, namely to accelerate convergence and empower digital via our PERFEXE 10 approach. This will enable us to further accelerate broadband connectivity, convergence and digital economy.”
He added that the operator plans to continue investing in long-term growth in line with its expansion plans.
During the first quarter, Telekom Malaysia's total capex amounted to 327.4 million ringgit, representing 11.5% of revenue.
Spending was mostly focused on major projects including the High Speed Broadband (HSBB) and Suburban Broadband (SUBB) state-supported national broadband networks and expanding the operator's LTE footprint.