CWC leaps as it beats forecasts ahead of selling off divisions
SHARES in Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), the telecoms operator with operations in a number of former colonies, rose by just under six per cent yesterday as the company reported strong growth in its Macau operation.
CWC beat predictions that revenue would be flat in the six months to October, posting a one per cent rise in turnover to $1.4bn (£876m). The company’s four main business are in the Caribbean, Panama, Monaco and Macau, but it has recently said that it is in discussions to sell the latter two.
Chief executive Tony Rice has outlined a plan to focus on operations in the Caribbean and Panama. He told City A.M. that the operations in the West were “a preferential environment for a business with a strong growth dynamic”, saying that the Macau and Monaco divisions were “ex-growth”.
Surprisingly, it was Macau that saw the biggest sales rise out of CWC’s four divisions, with turnover in the region rising 20 per cent to $310m. Rice said negotiations to sell parts of the company were “complicated and multi-party”, and said he had not decided what CWC would do with the money if they were sold.
The Macau and Monaco operations are estimated to be worth over $1.5bn between them.