PLDT says Q3 net income higher than Q2

INQ7 MONEY - BREAKING NEWS

October 11, 2006
Updated 12:59:01 (Mla time)

Reuters

PHILIPPINE Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), the country's most valuable firm, said on Tuesday its third-quarter net income was likely to exceed the second quarter's P6.73 billion ($134.6 million).

"We are benefiting from the strong peso so the forex loss in the second quarter is reversing to a forex gain in the third quarter," Chairman Manuel Pangilinan told reporters.

"The third-quarter reported income should be better," he said, adding that the income figure "would probably be ahead" of the year-ago level.

PLDT will report official third-quarter results on Nov. 7.

PLDT, Asia's eighth-largest mobile phone operator by subscribers, posted net income of P8.2 billion in the July-September quarter last year, but this may be up for revision with the adoption of new accounting standards.

The firm had outstanding debts of $2.1 billion at the end of 2005, which it wants to cut to $1.7 billion at the end of this year.

The Philippine peso gained about 7 percent against the dollar at the end of September from the end of June. It has gained about 6 percent so far this year, hitting four-year highs early this month.

The company, with a market capitalization of $8.1 billion, is partly owned by Hong Kong's First Pacific Co. Ltd. and Japan's NTT group

Shares of PLDT slid 0.46 percent to P2,180 as the main index was nearly flat as of 0348 GMT.

($1=50 pesos)

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