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British telecoms company Vodafone has today reported an acceleration in quarterly service revenue after Germany, its biggest market, returned to growth.
The group, which announced the sale of its Spanish business last month and the merger of its UK unit with Hutchison’s Three in June, reiterated its guidance for full-year earnings to be broadly flat at around €13.3 billion.
It reported a 4.2% rise in group service revenue for the six months to the end of September, with 4.7% growth in the second quarter after 3.7% in the first.
A 0.3% rise in adjusted half-year core earnings was limited by higher energy costs.
Shares in the group, which have fallen 26% in the last 12 months, climbed 1.3% in early trade.
Chief executive Margherita Della Valle said Vodafone had delivered improved revenue growth in nearly all of its markets in the first half of its financial year.
“Our focus on customers and simplifying our business is beginning to bear fruit, although much more needs to be done,” she said.
Italy and Spain continued to decline, although there were small improvements in both quarter-on-quarter.
Vodafone said competition in the value mobile segment in Italy remained intense.
French rival Iliad said today it had gained 382,000 new subscribers in Italy in its third quarter, its best performance for three years.
Vodafone executives are examining possible options including a sale or joint venture for its Italian operations, two people familiar with the situation told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Potential candidates for a deal include Iliad, which last year tabled a €11 billion bid for the asset, according to other sources.
A spokesperson for Iliad declined to comment, although its chief executive, Thomas Reynaud, told reporters today: “If there is consolidation in Italy, we want to participate actively.”
Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore said at the weekend that Swisscom’s Fastweb could be another potential buyer for Vodafone’s Italian business.
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