The largest Canadian phone company, BEC Inc. has reported a fall in its second quarter profit owing to the slowness of its Bell wireless unit. The second quarter profit fell 4.2 percent and the net income fell to C$346 million or 45 cents a share, from C$361 exactly a year earlier. The sales too fell by 2.1 percent and stood at C$ 4.3 billion.
The number of new costumers continues to fall as companies reduce spending on technology and customers defer upgrading to new handsets. As part of the global slump, Canada’s unemployment rate rose to 8.6 percent – an 11 year high. The BCE stock has lost 1.8 % at the stock exchange this year.
The company had said in February that the sales would be stable. Recent reports say full-year sales will increase slightly by about 1-2 percent. Profit per share would be C$2.50, with some costs being excluded. BCE’s annual dividend lifted by 5 percent to C$ 1.62 a share-the second increase this year.
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