Kuwait - Mubasher: The financial results of Mobile Telecommunications Co. (Zain) were affected by currency reevaluations, said chairman Asaad Al Banwan, according to a bourse filing on Sunday.
The top executive pointed to a $57 million loss in the first six months of 2016, compared to $42 million in the same half last year, and a $22 million loss in Q2-16, compared to $35 million in the same period in 2015.
We were affected the most in the Iraqi market because of the widespread political turmoil, besides the increase in taxes imposed on other sectors in Iraq, like the 20% sales tax that badly affected Zain there, Al Banwan said in the statement.
Zain Kuwait’s profits levelled up 2% in the first half of 2016 to KWD 82 million ($272 million), compared to KWD 80 million ($269 million) in H1-15.
The telecomm group operates in 8 markets, namely: Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Iraq, and Jordan. Zain hopes to enter the Egyptian market by competing to provide 4G mobile services.
