KT Corp. eyes 24 tln won in 2009 sales after merger

(ATTN: ADDS more info in 3rd para; UPDATES stock price)
By Kim Young-gyo
SEOUL, June 1 (Yonhap) -- KT Corp., South Korea's top phone and Internet company,
said Monday it expects its sales to rise 26 percent on-year to 24 trillion won
(US$19.2 billion) this year on diversified services that combine mobile and
fixed-line telephony.
Its operating profit is likely to reach 2 trillion won this year, up from an
earlier estimate of 1.8 trillion won, KT said in a statement marking the official
start of its operations as a new entity after completing a merger with mobile
unit KTF Co.
The company also said it will seek to record 27 trillion won in total sales in
2012, the bulk of which, or 21 trillion won, is expected to come from mobile,
fixed-line and Internet services.
The merger created a telecom giant with 24 trillion won in assets and a workforce
of 38,000.
KT controls more than 90 percent of South Korea's wired telephone market and
services nearly 45 percent of broadband Internet users, while KTF had a nearly 30
percent share of the mobile phone market, compared with South Korea's No. 1
mobile carrier SK Telecom Co.'s 50 percent.
Shares of KT closed at 36,050 won, up 6.03 percent from the previous session.
In 2008, KT's net profit plunged 54 percent to 449.3 billion won, with sales
falling 1.3 percent to 11.7 trillion won. KTF posted a net profit of 164.6
billion won, with sales climbing 14.4 percent to 8.35 trillion won.
ygkim@yna.co.kr
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