Vodafone revenues up 16% to GBP 9.2 billion ($18.3 billion)

Vodafone revenues up 16% to GBP 9.2 billion ($18.3 billion)

Vodafone Group reported revenues for the quarter ended 31 December of GBP 9.163 billion, up 15.8 percent from the year-earlier period. Takeovers in Turkey and India and positive currency effects drove the increase, while organic growth was 4.4 percent. Proportionate for ownership, Vodafone finished the year with 252.3 million mobile customers, up by 10.8 million from September. Of the total, 24.7 million used 3G devices. Vodafone repeated its outlook for the fiscal year to March, for revenues of GBP 34.5-35.1 billion, while noting the recent strengthening in the euro could have an additional positive effect. Annual adjusted operating profit is estimated at GBP 9.5-9.9 billion, with a lower EBITDA margin year-on-year. Capital spending will reach GBP 4.7-5.0 billion for the full year, including GBP 1 billion in India.

In its core region Europe, Vodafone reported revenues up 7.3 percent to GBP 6.652 billion, with half the growth coming from exchange rate effects. Voice revenues showed an organic decline of 2.2 percent, hurt by cuts in termination and roaming rates, while messaging revenues increased 8.1 percent and data sales were up 35.5 percent on an oragnic basis. Voice usage increased 16.5 percent from a year ago, led by Germany and Italy. The region added a net 3.1 million new customers in the quarter, taking the total base to 109.1 million. The company's fixed-line business generated revenues of GBP 462 million, with the Tele2 activities in Italy and Spain finishing the quarter with respectively 0.4 and 0.2 million ADSL customers.

In the EMAPA region, revenues jumped 46.8 percent to GBP 2.496 billion thanks to the takeover in India. Organic service revenue growth was 13.7 percent, with a 9.9 percent rise in Eastern Europe, the Pacific up 7.5 percent and the Middle East, Africa and Asia up 20.9 percent. The region added a net 7.7 million new customers in the quarter, of which 4.2 million in India, for a total abse of 112.0 million.