Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) announced on Thursday that its net profit had soared 83% in the first half of the year, thanks to a gain related to its Indonesian associate Telkomsel’s integration with IndiHome and higher contributions from its other divisions.
The deal, which was expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2023, would see Telkomsel merge with SingTel’s IndiHome broadband arm in order to expand into Indonesia’s fixed broadband market. SingTel currently holds a 29.6% stake in the enlarged integrated mobile and fixed broadband company.
“For Telkomsel, first-time contributions from IndiHome largely offset the impact of SingTel’s reduced stake,” the company said in a statement. SingTel had previously held a 35% stake in Telkomsel.
SingTel reported a net profit of S$2.14 billion ($1.58 billion) for the six months ended September 30, compared to S$1.17 billion in the same period last year. The company declared an interim dividend of 5.2 Singapore cents per share, higher than the 4.6 Singapore cents per share declared a year earlier.
($1 = 1.3561 Singapore dollars)