The second largest mobile operator in South Korea, KT, reported a modest profit in the last quarter of 2018, despite a drop in mobile revenue, continued weakness in ARPU and a decrease in its broadband business.

Net income of KRW18.1 billion ($16.1 million) reversed a KRW124 billion loss in Q4 2017. Service revenue dipped 0.7 per cent to KRW5.02 trillion, with wireless service turnover falling 4.9 per cent to KRW1.62 trillion. Merchandise sales dropped 7.2 per cent to KRW973 billion.

Service revenue declined due to increased take-up of selective mobile discounts and compensation for a service failure caused by fire in a cable tunnel, the company said in an earnings statement.

Broadband revenue slid 2.3 per cent to KRW500 billion, while fixed voice revenue was down 3 per cent to KRW418 billion. Media and content revenue increased 11 per cent year-on-year to KRW649 billion.

The operator added 1.1 million mobile subscribers in 2018 to end December with 21.1 million. LTE penetration rose to 80.4 per cent from 77.2 per cent at end-2017, as it boosted 4G subscribers by 1.5 million to nearly 17 million.

ARPU dropped 7.2 per cent year-on-year to KRW31,608.

Capex for the full year fell 12 per cent to KRW1.98 trillion, with KRW1.03 trillion allocated to its access network.