Telenor posted a more robust set of Q2 figures after a tough first quarter, buoyed by improved performances in Malaysia, Pakistan, Sweden and Thailand. Strong growth in Asia enabled the Oslo-headquartered operator to expand its subscriber base by five million customers.

Year-on-year, Q2 revenue was up 1.5 per cent from restated 2012 figures, to NOK25.7 billion ($4.3 billion), while after-tax profit jumped 57 per cent to NOK3.25 billion.

Underlying cash profits (EBITDA) increased 9.8 per cent, to NOK8.86 billion, slightly exceeding analysts’ expectations (NOK8.77 billion) according to Reuters.

“Telenor’s geographical footprint covers both advanced and growing economies, offering growth opportunities and profitability as demonstrated in the second quarter,” said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, Telenor’s chief executive.

Promotional campaigns helped boost the number of subscribers in Bangladesh and Pakistan by 2.1 million and 1.3 million respectively.

Dtac, Telenor’s Thai mobile subsidiary, got a subscription boost of 622,000 during the second quarter. After completing the rollout of nationwide 3G network, it is aiming to launch commercial 3G services at the end of July.

Malaysia saw strong subscription growth, too, up 175,000.

While subscriber acquisition strengthened Telenor’s top line, the company continues to find regulatory difficulties abroad, particularly in Pakistan.

The CEO of Telenor Pakistan recently said the operator would think again about participating in the country’s upcoming 3G spectrum auction, blaming the government for introducing tax increases and greater regulatory costs.

In Telenor’s developed Nordic markets, competitive and regulatory pressures continue.

In Sweden, however, while mobile ARPU in local currency decreased by 9 per cent, driven by reduced interconnect rates and discounts for new subscriptions, ARPU actually improved 2 per cent when those factors are stripped out. Growth in data-centric bundled offerings, says Telenor, more than offset the decline in voice and messaging revenues.

Coinciding with the Q2 results announcement, and reflecting the group’s improved financial performance, Telenor said it would start a share buyback programme for approximately 1 per cent of outstanding shares. The programme is to be completed before its AGM in 2014.