[Kabar-indonesia] Telkom sees 20 pct revenue growth in '06 [+update: Q2 Net Profit Jumps]

[JoyoNews at aol.com]

also: update: Indonesia's Telkom Q2 net profit jumps

Indonesia Telkom sees 20 pct revenue growth in '06

By Nury Sybli and Yoga Rusmana

JAKARTA, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Indonesia's largest phone company, 
PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), expects revenue to grow 
20 percent in 2006, in line with analysts' forecasts, on the back 
of an increase in customers, its finance director said on Tuesday.

Separately, mobile subsidiary PT Telekomunikasi Selular (Telkomsel) 
said it expected its revenue to climb by 30-35 percent this year from 
the year-ago period.

Indonesia's mobile phone sector has been growing rapidly. The number 
of mobile users in the world's fourth most populous nation rose 50 percent 
last year, and many predict subscriber numbers could double to 100 million 
by 2010.

"We are targeting revenue growth of 20 percent this year, partly due to an 
increase in the number of customers," Rinaldi Firmansyah, Telkom's finance 
director, told reporters.

Analysts polled by Reuters Estimates predicted Telkom would post a net 
profit of 11.9 trillion rupiah ($1.31 billion) this year, compared with 7.99 
trillion 
in 2005, while revenue was estimated to jump to 50.3 trillion rupiah from 
41.8 
trillion in 2005.

The net profit of the largest capitalised company on the Jakarta bourse rose 
53 percent in the first half of this year to 5.82 trillion rupiah, with 
revenue up 
23.8 percent to nearly 24 trillion over the period.

Kiskenda Suriahardja, Telkomsel's president director, said the company 
had around 30.5 million users by the end of July, up from around 24.3 
million at the end of last year. It controls around 52.5 percent of the total 
market.

"The total customers by the end of the year will be at least 34-35 million," 
Suriahardja told reporters. "With those additional customers, we estimate 
a 30-35 percent increase in revenue this year."

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd has a 35 percent stake in Telkomsel, 
the largest mobile phone operator in the country.

The rapid growth in the mobile phone sector comes despite some of the 
highest phone tariffs in the world, which some analysts say has prevented 
players from unlocking the industry's potential.

Only about 20 percent of Indonesia's 220 million people subscribe to a mobile 
phone service, compared with around 80 percent in Malaysia, more than 40 
percent in the Philippines and about 50 percent in Thailand.

However, some analysts say competition from fixed-wireless operators and 
lower call rates are expected to lower the margins of mobile phone operators 
in the country.

Telkom's share price has risen around 29 percent since the start of the year, 
outpacing the increase in the Jakarta Composite Index of just over 17 
percent. ($1=9,085 rupiah) 

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Indonesia's Telkom Q2 net profit jumps

JAKARTA, July 31 (Reuters) - Indonesia's largest telecommunications firm, 
PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (Telkom), posted a 17 percent jump in 
second-quarter net profit, thanks to strong growth in its mobile phone users.

Telkom, which controls the country's largest mobile phone operator, 
PT Telekomunikasi Selular (Telkomsel), saw the number of its mobile 
phone users climb by around 8.5 percent to 29.3 million by the end of 
June from some 27 million in the first quarter and 24.3 million at the 
end of last year.

Telkomsel, 35 percent owned by Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, 
controls more than half of Indonesia's 50 million plus mobile phone 
users.

The largest company on the Jakarta bourse, with a market capitalisation 
of $16.5 billion, booked a net profit of 2.36 trillion rupiah ($260.1 
million) 
in April-June compared to 2.02 trillion in the same period a year ago, 
according to Reuters calculations based on first-half results published 
on Monday.

Total revenue climed 21.3 percent to 12.2 trillion rupiah, while revenue from 
its cellular phone operation rose 46 percent to 4.94 trillion rupiah in the 
last quarter.

The cellular phone business accounts for around 40 percent of Telkom's 
revenue.

Telkomsel is aiming to have 33 million users by the end of this year.

The mobile phone market grew 50 percent last year in the world's fourth most 
populous nation, home to 220 million people, and many predict the number 
of mobile phone users could double to 100 million by 2010.

But Indonesia has some of the highest phone tariffs in the world, which some 
analysts say has prevented players from unlocking the industry's potential.

Only about 20 percent of Indonesia's population subscribes to mobile phone 
service, compared to 80 percent in Malaysia, 43 percent in the Philippines 
and 49 percent in Thailand.

However, competition from fixed-wireless operators and lower call rates is 
expected to reduce the margins of mobile phone operators in the country.

Telkom's share price has gained 26.3 percent since the start of the year, 
outpacing the Jakarta Composite Index which had increased 16.3 percent 
over the period. ($1 = 9,073 rupiah) 

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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