Vienna: Austrian telecommunications firm TelekomAustria on Wednesday posted a drop in profit in the third quarter of the year amid a weak economy and pricing pressure.
In the July-September period, net profit dropped to €99.2 million (Dh466 million or $126.2 million), down 22.5 per cent from €127.9 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement.
Operating profit in the period rose 6.5 per cent to €177 million, while sales dipped to €1.09 billion from €1.11 billion in the third quarter of 2011.
Telekom said lower prices due to intense competition and a weak economy, as well as regulatory pressure, pushed down revenues in Austria, Bulgaria and Croatia.
It noted however a strong performance in Belarus, which partly counterbalanced the poor showing in its other markets.
Over the first nine months of 2012, Telekom Austria saw its net profit jump over 162 per cent to €180.1 million, while operating income rose 85.9 per cent to €388.1 million.
Year-to-date sales meanwhile dropped to €3.2 billion, from 3.4 billion euros in the first nine months of 2011.
