HONG KONG, March 4 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Key Highlights of
2008 Full Year Results: -- Group mobile customer base grew
approximately 28% to over 12 million -- Turnover increased over 16%
to approximately HK$24 billion -- EBITDA rose approximately 17% to
over HK$6.1 billion -- Operating profit turned positive to
approximately HK$4.1 billion -- Indonesian operation surpassed all
operational targets -- Vietnamese operation to launch GSM during
March 2009 Financial Results Highlights: 2007 2008 Change HK$ HK$ %
million million Turnover 20,401 23,725 +16.3% Operating profit /
(loss) (2,819) 4,060 -- Profit for the year 67,776 2,919 -- Profit
attributable to equity holders of the Company 66,884 1,883 -- Basic
earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the Company
HK$14.01 HK$0.39 -- Hutchison Telecommunications International
Limited ('Hutchison Telecom'; 'the Group'; 'the Company'; HKEx:
2332; NYSE: HTX) today announced the financial results for the full
year ended 2008 and quarterly key performance indicators for the
fourth quarter of 2008. Driven by the strong growth in total
customer base and increased revenue contributions from established
operations in Hong Kong and Israel, the Group reported an increase
of over 16% in total turnover to approximately HK$24 billion and an
increase of 16.8% in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation
and amortisation ('EBITDA') to HK$6,138 million. EBITDA margin for
the full year 2008 trended up slightly to 25.9% while operating
profit, on a like-for-like basis and after excluding several
one-off items recorded in 2008, jumped 29.1% to HK$2,092 million
reflecting the continued improvement in the fundamentals for
profitable growth. Excluding Vietnam and Ghana, the Group
registered approximately 28% yearly growth in its total customer
base in 2008, driven mainly by strong customer acquisition in
Indonesia and the continued expansion of its 3G customer bases in
Hong Kong and Israel. These, together with the sustained revenue
contribution from Hong Kong's fixed-line operation, led to a 16.3%
growth to HK$24 billion in the Group's total turnover. Although the
Group reported increased expenses incurred from network expansion
in Indonesia and GSM rollout in Vietnam in 2008, the strong revenue
growth as a whole diluted the impact bringing a 16.8% yearly
increase to EBITDA. In terms of profitability, the Group's EBITDA
margin was 25.9% mainly reflecting the impact of the suspension of
revenue contribution from the Vietnamese operation since March 2008
due to the new GSM network rollout. Several one-off transactions
occurred in 2008 taking operating profit to HK$4,060 million
compared to an operating loss of HK$2,819 million in 2007. These
one-off transactions included tower sale in Indonesia* and the
disposal of its indirect interest in Ghana. Excluding these the
Group's operating profit rose 29.1% to HK$2,092 million, reflecting
the significant improvement of operating profit from Israeli, Hong
Kong and Thailand operations which offset increased losses from
Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Profit for the year was HK$2,919 million
and profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was
HK$1,883 million. The related figures for 2007 included the sale of
the Company's indirect interest in CGP Investments (Holdings)
Limited. Dennis Lui, Chief Executive Officer of Hutchison Telecom
said: 'We are pleased to have delivered a set of satisfying results
in a year full of challenges. Particularly our Indonesian operation
achieved encouraging customer growth and improved operational
performance amidst intense market competition. We expect to see
this positive trend sustained in 2009 as our network expansion
continues. Our Vietnamese operation is set to launch a nationwide
GSM service this month with a network covering all major cities in
Vietnam. Together these two markets will be the key impetus for
growth for Hutchison Telecom." "The impact of the global economic
uncertainty is yet to be fully seen in telecommunications industry.
We continue to be watchful of the potential challenges. Our
operation in Israel embarked on a series of cost-management
initiatives last year to enable it to maintain its operating
efficiency. We will apply this approach across all operations to
support profitable growth." said Mr Lui. Chris Foll, Chief
Financial Officer of Hutchison Telecom said: "Excluding Hong Kong
and Macau operations, we will invest approximately HK$7 billion in
2009 with the majority going into the Indonesian and Vietnamese
operations." Review of operations Hong Kong and Macau The combined
turnover from the Group's fixed-line and mobile businesses in Hong
Kong and Macau was HK$8,069 million, an increase of 11.9% compared
to 2007. EBITDA was also up 10.7% at HK$2,742 million in 2008 with
an EBITDA margin of 34.0%. Hong Kong and Macau mobile -- Blended
customer base increased 11.3% yearly to over 2.7 million -- 3G
customer base grew 24.2% yearly to 1,340,000 -- Turnover and EBITDA
increased 12.6% and 11.8% respectively The Group's mobile
operations in Hong Kong and Macau delivered a healthy performance
in 2008 despite intense market competition. The Hong Kong operation
is the largest 3G service provider in Hong Kong in terms of
customer numbers. From this solid base and the first-mover sale of
iPhone 3G in Hong Kong and Macau since the third quarter in 2008
both operations were able to stimulate the adoption of mobile data
usage. On a yearly basis the non-voice portion of mobile
communications service revenue grew 34%, signalling an encouraging
trend for profitability growth. Turnover increased 12.6% yearly to
HK$5,376 million driven mainly by the customer growth. EBITDA for
the year was HK$1,757 million, an increase of 11.8% compared to
HK$1,572 million in 2007. The EBITDA margin was comparable to last
year at 32.7%, a result of the operations' continued focus on
operational cost control. Operating profit for the year fell
slightly to HK$432 million compared to HK$447 million in 2007,
mainly due to the amortisation on capitalised customer acquisition
and retention costs in the year. Hong Kong fixed-line -- Turnover
increased 10.6% yearly to HK$2,693 million -- EBITDA grew 9% yearly
to HK$985 million and EBITDA margin was 36.6% Utilising its
territory-wide fibre-to-the-building network, the Group's Hong Kong
fixed-line operation Hutchison Global Communications Limited
('HGC') was able to maintain healthy and profitable growth in its
core business segments including the international and carrier
markets as well as corporate and business markets. The
international and carrier markets grew year-on-year by 24.8%,
fueled by the growth in demand for data and IDD services.
Leveraging its strong foothold in the data and internet businesses
for banking, finance and public sectors HGC also recorded good
revenue growth in the corporate and business segments with 11.3%
yearly increase. On top of the healthy top-line growth HGC
delivered an impressive increase in operating profit of 37.2%
year-on-year to HK$332 million, largely reflecting the growth in
turnover and a slight decrease in depreciation and amortisation
charges compared to last year. Israel -- A record year in terms of
financial and operational results with EBITDA, cash flow and net
profit grew by double digits -- Total customer base rose to
2,898,000 with 3G base enlarged to approximately 1 million --
Diversification of business portfolio in order to establish the
foundation for future revenue stream and strengthen market
leadership -- Turnover growth of 18.6% assisted by favourable
foreign exchange movement 2008 was another profitable year for
Partner Communications Company Ltd. ('Partner'). During the year
Partner continued to attract high value customers with
approximately 84% of its annual net new subscribers coming from the
business sector. At the same time with its strong 3G focus Partner
was able to expand its 3G customer base by 50.2% to 951,000. These
together with management's continued focus on operational
efficiency generated record financial results. During the year
Partner embarked on new strategic direction by extending into
non-cellular connectivity businesses such as fixed-line services
through voice over broadband technology for the business segment,
home Wi-Fi networks and multimedia content. These are to ensure
Partner stays in the forefront of cross-platform telecommunications
businesses. Turnover growth benefited from the favourable currency
exchange and registered a 18.6% growth to HK$13,813 million. EBITDA
increased 30.0% to HK$4,895 million compared to HK$3,765 million in
2007 and the margin improved significantly to 35.4% from 32.3% in
2007, mainly due to the increase in 3G revenue growth and
profitability. Excluding the mobile telecommunications product
business such as handsets and accessories the underlying EBITDA
margin from mobile telecommunications services was even higher at
39.4%. Operating profit increased 35.6% to HK$2,980 million
compared to HK$2,197 million in 2007. Indonesia -- Customer base
more than doubled to 4,501,000 -- Accelerated network expansion
with over 6,300 base stations on-air The Group's Indonesian
operation PT. Hutchison CP Telecommunications ('HCPT') continued to
report good progress in its second year of operation despite a very
challenging environment. Total customer base grew over 120% yearly
on the back of accelerated network expansion across the country,
strong branding and an effective distribution system. HCPT ended
the year 2008 with more than 6,300 base stations on-air covering
over 67% of the total population and all major cities in the
country. It expects to increase the size of its networks to over
9,000 base stations by the end of 2009. HCPT is looking to maintain
strong customer acquisition in 2009 in line with its expanded
coverage. HCPT's turnover for the year increased 169.2% to HK$315
million on the back of customer growth. However, as HCPT is still
in the early stage of establishing its footprint and further
network expansion and increased marketing activities are required
to establish a critical mass of customers, its loss before
interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation ('LBITDA') for
2008 increased to HK$1,003 million from HK$475 million in 2007.
Nevertheless 2008 was a successful year for HCPT, as it seeks to
become a leading GSM operator in Indonesia. Particularly in the
last quarter where there was encouraging improvement in
profitability. Through a series of revenue improvement initiatives
implemented in the beginning of the second half, HCPT's prepaid
average revenue per user ('ARPU') went up 22.2% to IDR11,000 from
the last quarter. Together with stablised minutes of use ('MOU')
the average revenue per minute ('ARPM') was lifted to IDR200
compared to IDR177 in the third quarter. Although prepaid churn
appeared to have increased to 24.3% this was mainly due to an
one-off exercise at the year end that identified and reduced
inactive customers. HCPT expects to see churn revert to levels
experienced in earlier quarters. Sri Lanka -- Customer base stood
at 887,000 -- Turnover was HK$160 million 2008 posed severe
challenges to Hutchison Telecommunications Lanka (Private) Limited
("HTLL"). Political instability, intensified market competition and
new government policy regarding prepaid customer registration
contributed to the negative growth in 2008. HTLL had during the
year tightened its policy on the recognition of prepaid customers
to align with government's new policy which resulted in a
write-down of the customer base 229,000 in the third quarter.
EBITDA decreased to HK$37 million in 2008 mainly due to the
increase in regulatory charges and higher network costs. Thailand
-- Customer base was up to 1.1 million -- Turnover increased 22.5%
to HK$1,192 million -- Restored EBITDA to HK$81 million The Group
is in continued discussions with its partner in Thailand on the
future for its regional CDMA operation in Thailand. Meanwhile the
business focussed on operating in a self-sustaining financial mode,
achieving customer growth to 1.1 million by the end of 2008.
Turnover increased to HK$1,192 million from HK$973 million in 2007
and EBITDA to HK$81 million from a LBITDA of HK$14 million in 2007.
Operating profit was HK$80 million in 2008 compared to operating
loss of HK$4,462 million in the year before when an impairment
charge of HK$3,854 million on non-current assets was taken. Outlook
In 2008, the Group reported encouraging results with substantial
growth in its established businesses and good progress in network
rollout in its emerging market operations. It achieved strong
growth in EBITDA and operating profits in Hong Kong and Israel with
a total 3G customer base over 2.3 million today, a network with
over 67% population coverage in Indonesia and more than 4.5 million
customers, and significant progress made in preparation for the
launch of its new GSM service in Vietnam in the first quarter 2009.
Looking ahead in 2009, Hutchison Telecom expects that the
businesses will continue to perform well, subject to the
uncertainties of the global economy. The Group's Hong Kong and
Israeli operations will continue to strengthen their leadership in
the 3G segment. The successful bid by the Group's Hong Kong mobile
operation in conjunction with Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT)
Limited for Broadband Wireless Access radio spectrum in Hong Kong
will allow new and enhanced content and services to be made
available to its customers in the future. Hutchison Telecom also
expects to see further synergies generated through fixed-mobile
convergence initiatives between its Hong Kong fixed-line and mobile
business in the coming years. The Group will continue to invest in
the Indonesia and Vietnam markets in 2009 and target to increase
the size of networks in Indonesia to around 9,000 base stations by
the end of the year and 5,000 base stations in Vietnam within the
first 12 months of the launch. As the Group's Indonesian network
footprint expands, it expects to see continued and strong growth in
existing service areas in Java and Sumatra and expanded market
share in new areas in Kalimantan and Sulawesi. In view of the above
development, Hutchison Telecom anticipates the Group's capital
expenditure in 2009, excluding Hong Kong and Macau operations to be
approximately HK$7 billion the majority of which is earmarked for
Indonesia and Vietnam. * As part of its periodic review of company
filing, the U.S. SEC has raised some comments on the accounting
treatment of HCPT's sale and leaseback transactions for base
station towers in 2008. The Company cannot predict the outcome of
this review and it is possible that an adjustment to the Company's
accounts may be required to account for the transactions as a
finance lease. Further details are in the Company's 2008 results
announcement published today. About Hutchison Telecommunications
International Limited Hutchison Telecommunications International
Limited ('Hutchison Telecom' or 'the Group') is a leading global
provider of telecommunications services. The Group currently offers
mobile and fixed-line telecommunication services in Hong Kong and
Israel, and operates mobile telecommunications services in Macau,
Indonesia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Thailand. It was the first
provider of 3G mobile services in Hong Kong and Israel and operates
brands including "Hutch", "3" and "Orange". Hutchison Telecom is a
listed company with American Depositary Shares quoted on the New
York Stock Exchange under the ticker HTX and shares listed on the
Stock Exchange of Hong Kong under the stock code 2332. A subsidiary
of the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa Group, Hutchison Telecom
is dedicated to providing superior telecommunications services in
dynamic markets. For more information about Hutchison Telecom, see
http://www.htil.com/ . Cautionary Statements This press release
contains forward-looking statements. Statements that are not
historical facts, including statements about the beliefs and
expectations of Hutchison Telecommunications International Limited
('the Company'), are forward-looking statements. These statements
are based on current plans, estimates and projections, and
therefore you should not place undue reliance on them.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made,
and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any of
them in light of new information or future events. Forward-looking
statements involve inherent risks, uncertainties and assumptions.
The Company cautions you that if these risks or uncertainties ever
materialise or the assumptions prove incorrect, or if a number of
important factors occur or do not occur, the Company's actual
results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in
any forward-looking statement. Additional information as to factors
that may cause actual results to differ materially from the
Company's forward-looking statements can be found in the Company's
filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
-- Tables to Follow -- Unaudited Key Performance Indicators for
Fourth Quarter 2008 Customer Base Q4 2008 Q3 2008 31 December 2008
30 September 2008 Total Postpaid Prepaid Total Postpaid Prepaid
Market ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) Hong Kong (incl
Macau) 2,702 1,792 910 2,657 1,766 891 Indonesia 4,501 11 4,490
3,604 9 3,595 Israel 2,898 2,153 745 2,882 2,145 737 Sri Lanka 887
-- 887 958 -- 958 Thailand 1,070 413 657 1,094 420 674 Total 12,058
-- -- 11,195 -- -- Customer Base (Continued) Q2 2008 Q1 2008 30
June 2008 31 March 2008 Total Postpaid Prepaid Total Postpaid
Prepaid Market ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) ('000) Hong Kong
(incl Macau) 2,595 1,720 875 2,515 1,698 817 Indonesia 3,203 7
3,196 2,331 4 2,327 Israel 2,856 2,135 721 2,823 2,108 715 Sri
Lanka 1,291 -- 1,291 1,289 -- 1,289 Thailand 1,117 418 699 1,071
405 666 Total 11,062 -- -- 10,029 -- -- Customer Base (Continued)
Q4 2007 31 December 2007 Total Postpaid Prepaid Market ('000)
('000) ('000) Hong Kong (incl Macau) 2,427 1,671 756 Indonesia
2,039 3 2,036 Israel 2,860 2,068 792 Sri Lanka 1,141 -- 1,141
Thailand 978 372 606 Total 9,445 -- -- Notes: (1) A customer is
defined as a Postpaid Customer or a Prepaid Customer who has a
Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) or Universal Subscriber Identity
Module (USIM) that has access to the network for any purpose,
including voice, data or video services. (2) Postpaid Customers are
defined as those whose mobile telecommunications service usage is
paid in arrears upon receipt of the mobile telecommunications
operator's invoice and who have not been temporarily or permanently
suspended from service. (3) Prepaid Customers are defined as
customers with prepaid SIM cards or prepaid USIM cards that have
been activated but not been used up or expired at period end. A new
prepaid customer is recognised upon making the first call or
registration/activation. (4) All numbers quoted on the basis of the
total customer base of the operation irrespective of the Company's
ownership percentage. (5) All numbers quoted as at last day of the
quarter. (6) The data for Hong Kong and Israel relate to both 2G
and 3G services. (7) The data for Ghana and Vietnam are excluded.
ARPU (1) Q4 2008 Q3 2008 31 December 2008 30 September 2008 Market
Currency Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong
Kong (incl Macau) HKD 148 213 19 150 213 24 Indonesia IDR('000) 11
134 11 10 134 9 Israel NIS 158 -- -- 166 -- -- Sri Lanka LKR 164 --
164 181 -- 181 Thailand THB 381 762 142 378 763 143 ARPU (1)
(Continued) Q2 2008 Q1 2008 30 June 2008 31 March 2008 Market
Currency Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong
Kong (incl Macau) HKD 148 210 24 149 208 24 Indonesia IDR('000) 12
108 12 14 120 14 Israel NIS 158 -- -- 155 -- -- Sri Lanka LKR 163
-- 163 193 -- 193 Thailand THB 386 784 147 405 808 157 ARPU (1)
(Continued) Q4 2007 31 December 2007 Market Currency Blended
Postpaid Prepaid Hong Kong (incl Macau) HKD 161 218 28 Indonesia
IDR('000) 15 114 15 Israel NIS 157 -- -- Sri Lanka LKR 242 -- 242
Thailand THB 417 813 165 Notes: (1) The monthly Average Revenue Per
User (ARPU) is calculated as the total Service Revenues for the
month divided by the simple average number of activated customers
for the month. The monthly ARPU for the quarter represents the
average of the monthly ARPU in the quarter. (2) Service Revenues
are defined as the direct recurring service revenues plus roaming
revenues. (3) The data for Hong Kong and Israel relate to both 2G
and 3G services. (4) The data for Ghana and Vietnam are excluded.
MOU (1) Q4 2008 Q3 2008 31 December 2008 30 September 2008 Market
Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong Kong (incl
Macau) 447 654 38 465 679 42 Indonesia 55 225 55 56 209 56 Israel
357 -- -- 376 -- -- Sri Lanka 74 -- 74 71 -- 71 Thailand 619 1,065
339 618 1,095 328 MOU (1) (Continued) Q2 2008 Q1 2008 30 June 2008
31 March 2008 Market Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid
Prepaid Hong Kong (incl Macau) 462 672 42 461 655 43 Indonesia 82
117 82 94 104 94 Israel 368 -- -- 359 -- -- Sri Lanka 54 -- 54 60
-- 60 Thailand 607 1,086 319 632 1,134 324 MOU (1) (Continued) Q4
2007 31 December 2007 Market Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong Kong
(incl Macau) 491 680 49 Indonesia 83 59 83 Israel 345 -- -- Sri
Lanka 69 -- 69 Thailand 643 1,110 347 Notes: (1) The monthly
Minutes of Use (MOU) is calculated as the total minutes carried
over the network (2G total airtime usage + 3G voice and video
usage, but excluding inbound on-net minutes) for the month divided
by the simple average number of activated customer. The monthly MOU
for the quarter represents the average of the monthly MOU in the
quarter. (2) The data for Hong Kong and Israel relate to both 2G
and 3G services. (3) The data for Ghana and Vietnam are excluded.
Churn (1) Q4 2008 Q3 2008 31 December 2008 30 September 2008 Market
Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong Kong (incl
Macau) 4.8% 1.7% 10.0% 4.3% 1.6% 9.0% Indonesia 24.2% 4.1% 24.3%
18.1% 5.3% 18.1% Israel 1.5% -- -- 1.3% -- -- Sri Lanka 4.4% --
4.4% 5.0% -- 5.0% Thailand 5.4% 3.1% 6.8% 6.5% 3.0% 8.6% Churn (1)
(Continued) Q2 2008 Q1 2008 30 June 2008 31 March 2008 Market
Blended Postpaid Prepaid Blended Postpaid Prepaid Hong Kong (incl
Macau) 4.0% 1.8% 8.0% 3.5% 1.8% 6.7% Indonesia 15.6% 7.9% 15.6%
17.6% 11.0% 17.6% Israel 1.3% -- -- 1.7% -- -- Sri Lanka 3.8% --
3.8% 2.9% -- 2.9% Thailand 6.0% 2.9% 7.8% 5.8% 2.7% 7.8% Churn (1)
(Continued) Q4 2007 31 December 2007 Market Blended Postpaid
Prepaid Hong Kong (incl Macau) 3.3% 1.8% 6.2% Indonesia 17.7% 16.3%
17.7% Israel 1.3% -- -- Sri Lanka 2.4% -- 2.4% Thailand 5.2% 2.8%
6.8% Notes: (1) The monthly churn % is calculated as the average
number of disconnections (net of reconnection and internal
migration between networks) for the month divided by the simple
average number of activated customers for the month. The monthly
churn % for the quarter represents the average of the monthly churn
rates in the quarter. (2) The data for Hong Kong and Israel relate
to both 2G and 3G services. (3)The data for Ghana and Vietnam are
excluded. The Board wishes to remind investors that the above key
performance indicators are based on the Group's unaudited internal
records. Investors are cautioned not to unduly rely on such data.
For enquiries, please contact: Mickey Shiu Corporate Communications
/ Investor Relations Hutchison Telecom Work: (852) 2128 3107
Mobile: (852) 9092 8233 E-mail: DATASOURCE: Hutchison
Telecommunications International Limited CONTACT: Mickey Shiu,
Corporate Communications or Investor Relations of Hutchison
Telecom, +852-2128-3107 or mobile, +852-9092-8233, or Web Site:
http://www.htil.com/
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