Rostelecom profits up on wireline stake sale

The Russian long-distance operator Rostelecom has reported a strong rise in first-half net profit to RUB9.83 billion (USD349.9 million), from RUB2.55 billion in 1H 2007. Sales dipped by 1.1%, however, to RUB31.4 billion. The firm says the rise in profit was due to the sale of an 11% stake in fixed line operator Golden Telecom to Vimpelcom plus the success of its strategy of diversifying its business portfolio. Sales of internet access services jumped 45.1% to RUB4.16 billion, though core revenues from long-distance transit traffic declined by 6.7% to RUB31.4 billion.