BANGKOK: True Corp Pcl reported a third-quarter net loss as Thailand’s largest telecoms provider was hit by rising costs related to network expansion and a mobile spectrum licence. The flagship company of billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont’s Charoen Pokphand Group, True reported a net loss of 2.75 billion baht ($78 million) versus a profit of 1.05 billion a year earlier.
The loss was larger than a loss of 1.96 billion baht forecast by two analysts polled by Reuters. Consolidated service revenues surged 19.8 percent due to significant growth in the cellular business, a rising subscriber base and higher mobile internet usage, it said in a statement. True’s market share in the cellular market rose to 24.2 percent as it added 1.1 million subscribers, representing 75 percent of the industry’s net additions and raising its subscriber base to 22.6 million. True is the country’s third-largest mobile operator. It aims to surpass second-ranked Total Access Communication by the end of 2016.
