Pakistan Telecommunication Co., the nation’s biggest phone-service provider, reported a 30 percent increase in second-quarter profit because of lower exchange losses.

Net income rose to 2.79 billion rupees ($32.9 million), or 0.55 rupee a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, from 2.14 billion rupees, or 0.42 rupee, a year earlier, the Islamabad- based company said in a statement to the Karachi Stock Exchange today. Revenue rose to 14.9 billion rupees from 14.5 billion rupees.

“Financial costs are lower because there were foreign exchange losses last year on equipment the company bought,” said Umer Pervez, research analyst at AKD Securities Ltd., in Karachi, who has a “buy” recommendation on the stock. “Pakistan Telecom is losing its sales to other competitors in a market it used to dominate a few years back.”

Pakistan Telecom has lost business to rivals including Telenor Asa., and China Mobile Communications Ltd. since 2004 when the government gave licenses to non-state telephone companies, ending its monopoly.

Pakistan Telecom’s financial costs fell to 87.1 million rupees in the second quarter, from 437.9 million rupees a year ago, according to the statement.

The company’s net income in six months rose to 5.35 billion rupees, or 1.05 rupee a share, from 5.3 billion rupees, or 1.04 rupee, a year earlier, the statement said. Revenue fell to 29.4 billion rupees from 31 billion rupees.

Pakistan Telecom shares, which have risen 8.5 percent this year, fell 2.2 percent to 19.15 rupees as of 1:22 p.m. local time on the Karachi Stock Exchange.

Emirates Telecommunications, the state-owned telephone provider in the United Arab Emirates, won management control of Pakistan Telecom in April 2006 after it bought a 26 percent stake in the company for $2.6 billion.

Source:Bloomberg