Bosnia's m:tel Q1 profit falls 18 percent to $14.5 mln

Mtel ad Banja Luka

30/04/2014 14:59

SARAJEVO, April 30 (Reuters) - Bosnia's second-largest telecoms firm, m:tel  TLKM.BJ , said on Wednesday its first quarter profit fell 18 percent to 20.55 million Bosnian marka ($14.54 million) due to the poor collection of bills in the fixed-line telephony sector. The company's revenues through March fell to 109.2 million marka from 110.6 million marka in the same period of the last year, while operating costs rose 4.7 percent to 87 million marka.  M:tel said the ongoing financial crisis has impacted its financial position and performance, resulting in a decrease in revenues from fixed telephony. It added the trend could directly influence its expected revenues this year. Sarajevo-based BH Telecom  BHTS.SJ , the country's largest telecoms operator, last week reported a 4.2 percent drop in full-year 2013 net profit to 116.6 million marka, citing lower prices for international traffic and increased operating costs. ID:nL6N0NK2V1  Shares in m:tel, with a market capitalisation of 801.3 million marka, traded at 1.63 marka, flat from Tuesday's close. (Reporting by Maja Zuvela; Edited by Daria Sito-Sucic and Sonya Hepinstall) ((maja.zuvela@thomsonreuters.com)(+387 33 295 485)(Reuters Messaging: maja.zuvela.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: BOSNIA M:TEL/RESULTS