Kuwait's Zain telecom second quarter profits rise 14%

Kuwaiti telecom giant Zain's net profits in the second quarter rose 14 percent despite currency losses and its operations in conflict zones, the company said Sunday.

Zain said it posted a net profit of 45 million dinars ($149.5 million) in the three months to June compared with the same period in 2015.

The net profit of Kuwait's largest mobile operator in the first six months also rose by 2.0 percent to 82 million dinars ($272 million), compared to a year earlier, Zain said in a statement.

"It is pleasing to report growth... given that Zain group is exposed to conflict zones and currency fluctuations," chairman Asaad al-Banwan said.

Besides Kuwait, Zain has operations in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. It also manages a unit in Morocco.

Zain businesses are most impacted by conflict in Iraq and currency losses in Sudan.

Consolidated revenues in the first half dropped slightly to $1.83 billion from $1.86 billion in the same period of 2015.

Over the past 12 months, the company's total subscribers dropped by 1.1 million to 45.2 million.

Zain, in which the government holds a stake of almost 25 percent, is one of three mobile operators in the emirate, alongside National Telecommunications Co (Wataniya) and Kuwait Telecommunications Co (VIVA).