(2nd LD) KT-2022 earnings

▲ A photo of the corporate logo of KT Corp. provided by the company (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(2nd LD) KT-2022 earnings

(2nd LD) KT 2022 net down 4.9 pct due to higher base effect

(ATTN: UPDATES with closing prices in last para)

SEOUL, Feb. 9 (Yonhap) -- KT Corp., South Korea's No. 2 wireless carrier, said Thursday its net profit declined last year from a year earlier due to a higher base effect.

KT's net income amounted to 1.38 trillion won (US$1.1 billion) on a consolidated basis in 2022, down 4.9 percent from the previous year's 1.45 trillion won, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Operating profit stood at 1.69 trillion won, up 1.1 percent on-year and annual revenue rose 3 percent to a record 25.65 trillion won.

KT said the on-year decline in net profit is due to a higher base effect stemming from equity sales worth 260 billion won in the fourth quarter of 2021.

The company, which is seeking to transform into a digital platform company from a telecommunications service firm, reported sales growth across its various business units, led by its 5G mobile operations.

Sales of its business-to-customer wireless business edged up 1.3 percent on-year to 9.46 trillion won, with the number of 5G subscribers reaching 8.45 million, which accounted for 62 percent of all of KT's mobile users.

Its content business sales also soared 25.4 percent thanks to growth of its content subsidiaries, such as KT Studio Genie, producer of the hit TV series "Extraordinary Attorney Woo Young-woo."

Shares in KT gained 0.59 percent to close at 33,950 won on the main bourse, outperforming the broader KOSPI's 0.09 percent drop.

(END)

[Copyright ⓒ K-VIBE. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution are prohibited.]