CEO, Bader Al-Kharafi
Zain Group booked a 7 per cent increase in Q1 2018
profit, despite foreign exchange and regulatory headwinds, as the company said
its focus on promoting “digital lifestyles” to its customers was paying off.
Mobile
World Live reports that year-on-year, data usage was up 10 per
cent across its eight markets and now makes up 26 per cent of group revenue. In
addition to the boost in data usage, the company hailed strong performances in
its home market of Kuwait and Iraq.
Net profit increased to KWD41 million ($137 million)
on revenue of KWD259 million. Customer numbers were up 2 per cent year-on-year
across its footprint to 46.9 million, despite a loss of 1.7 million customers
in Saudi Arabia during the year.
Zain attributed the decline in Saudi Arabia to an
“exodus of expat community” and new regulatory measures.
In its earnings statement, it added were it not for
a collapse in the value of Sudan’s currency – which fell 38 per cent
year-on-year – and adhering to new accounting standards, its revenue and profit
figures would have increased by much more.
The company estimated the decline in the value of
the currency in Sudan, and other foreign exchange headwinds, cost it KWD11.5
million of revenue and KWD2.1 million of profit in Q1 2018 alone.
Vice-chairman and group CEO, Bader Al-Kharafi said: “Management’s transformational and digitisation
efforts are resulting in sound operational progress across several of our key
markets.”
“If it were
not for unavoidable externalities such as the prolonged currency issue in Sudan
and various adverse factors in Saudi Arabia,” he added, “results would have
been even more impressive.”
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