News: Reliance Comm says Q4 profit up 42 pct

(RTR 01/05/2006) New Delhi - India's top CDMA-based mobile services firm, Reliance Communications Ventures Ltd., reported on Monday quarterly profit rose 42 percent as users surged in the world's fastest growing wireless services market.

Reliance Communications, ranked second in terms of mobile users, said its net profit jumped to 4.4 billion rupees for the fiscal fourth quarter from 3.1 billion in the third quarter.

Reliance Communications, which also has a small GSM business, did not announce its financial performance for the fourth quarter last year since it was an unlisted entity then. The company was listed in March this year.

Reliance Communications, which competes mainly with carriers such as Bharti Airtel Ltd. and state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., said its CDMA and GSM mobile user base surged 62 percent to 17.3 million customers at the end of March.

Total customers -- including fixed-line users -- grew 74 percent to 20.44 million.

Mobile ownership is soaring in Asia's third largest economy as local call rates of as low as 2-3 U.S. cents a minute lure customers.

Indian carriers added more than 5 million new wireless customers in March, but still wireless usage remains limited to below 10 percent of the total population as networks are largely city-centric.

Reliance Communications closed 6.4 percent higher at 320 rupees in a firm Mumbai market on Saturday. At this price, the stock is up 10 percent since its listing on March 6 compared with the 12.2 percent rise on the main index. Stock markets are closed in India on Monday due to local holiday.