Saudi Telecom Company, the biggest telecoms operator in the kingdom by market value, reported a 1.3 per cent increase in first-quarter net profit as it achieved double-digit revenue growth.
Net profit increased to 2.9 billion Saudi riyals ($773.3 million) in the three months to March 31, the company said in a statement to Saudi Arabia's Tadawul stock exchange, where its shares trade. Revenue for the quarter rose 12.6 per cent year-on-year to 15.6bn riyals.
“Results for this quarter as compared to the comparable quarter last year [were] distinct,” STC's group chief executive Olayan Alwetaid said.
Revenue growth was supported by an increase in its consumer business unit, where there was growth "in the broadband & fixed wireless access subscriber base by 10.1 per cent, FTTH [fibre-to-the-home] by 26 per cent, working lines by 3.1 per cent and data revenue by 4.5 per cent", Mr Alwetaid said.
The company's enterprise business unit’s revenue grew 33.4 per cent, following an increase in demand for the company's services and products, he added.
STC is majority owned by the kingdom's Public Investment Fund, which holds a 70 per cent stake in the company.
The telecoms operator, which has its headquarters in Riyadh, has about 13,500 employees in Saudi Arabia and more than 19,000 across the group.
Operating expenses were cut by 116m riyals in the first quarter as selling and marketing costs fell by 55m riyals and general and administration expenditures reduced by 95m riyals, STC said.
STC, which launched a new supercomputer Dammam 7 in January, also proposed an interim dividend of 1 riyal per share , equating to about 2bn riyals, to its shareholders for the first quarter.
The company is also rolling out a fifth-generation network across the kingdom. By February, it had deployed its 5G network in more than 47 cities.
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
More on Quran memorisation:
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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