South African mobile operator MTN Group said on Thursday its first-half earnings surged 46.5 per cent.
According to MTN Chief Executive Officer Ralph Mupita, Group service revenue increased 14.8 per cent to 92.5 billion rand ($5.71 billion), supported by growth of 4.1 per cent in MTN South Africa, 19.9 per cent in MTN Nigeria and 29.3 per cent in MTN Ghana amid higher demand for data services.
Data revenue grew 35.9 per cent, supported by the 14.2 per cent year-on-year growth in active data subscribers and 25.5 per cent increase in data usage. Voice revenue, its biggest service revenue generator, inched up 1.9 per cent, as financially constrained consumers in South Africa substituted voice calls with data calls.
Ralph Mupita disclosed that it had received a $35 million binding offer for its Afghanistan business, nearing an exit of the Middle East. He said the gross sum of $35 million would be paid over a period of time, and proceeds would be $31 million.
He added the completion of the deal would conclude MTN’s exit from Middle Eastern markets, after selling MTN Yemen and abandoning MTN Syria last year. Its 49 per cent financial investment in Irancell will continue to be managed within the MTN portfolio.
In 2020, MTN announced an exit from the Middle East to focus on its core African operations as part of its efforts to simplify its structure and reduce exposure to riskier markets.
MTN, which operates in 19 markets, reported headline earnings per share, the main profit measure in South Africa, of 567 cents in the six-months ended June 30, up from 387 cents a year earlier.
