Mobile giant Vodafone has reported pre-tax losses of £1.9 billion for the six months to the end of September, slightly better than the £2 billion in the same period last year.
Turnover was up 4% to £16.8 billion, while operating profits fell by 5% to £5.7 billion, though there was a 5% rise when currency effects were stripped out. There was good news for its thousands of Irish shareholders, as the company doubled its interim dividend to 1.91p.
Chief executive Arun Sarin said the company was excited about growth opportunities following the launch of its 3G services last week. The company now has 146.7 million customers, up 17%, and expects to record growth of 10% for the full year.
In Ireland, Vodafone's subscriber numbers rose to 1.89 million, with the addition of 8,500 new customers in its second quarter.
Average revenue per user was up to €596 from €576 at the same time last year. Turnover grew by 11% to €579.4m, while operating profits climbed by 13% to €208.3m.
* Vodafone shares closed 0.5% lower at 142 pence in London this evening.
