Wed, Feb 03, 2016 page15

• World Business Quick Take

  • Agencies
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  FINANCE

  Nomura Q3 profit plunges

  Nomura Holdings Inc’s third-quarter profit fell 49 percent, led by a decline in brokerage commissions and investment-banking fees. Net income declined to ￥35.4 billion (US$294 million) for the three months ended Dec. 31 from ￥70 billion a year earlier, Japan’s biggest brokerage said in a statement yesterday. That compared with the ￥38.7 billion average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

  TELECOMS

  Price war hurts SK Telecom

  Cutthroat competition in a saturated telecom market took a big slice out of SK Telecom’s profits last year, South Korea’s top wireless operator said yesterday. The company’s net profit fell 15.8 percent from the previous year to 1.52 trillion won (US$1.3 billion). SK Telecom has been staging a fierce subscription fee price war with two other major players — KT and LG Uplus. Revenue edged down 0.2 percent year-on-year as the company eliminated sign-up fees and offered subscription discounts for mobile services and network interconnections to secure customer share. The firm’s subscribers grew 1.2 percent last year to 28.6 million, with 66.3 percent using ultrafast services.

  BANKING

  Swedbank posts flat profits

  Swedbank AB said profit was little changed last quarter as Sweden’s biggest mortgage lender committed to its shareholder payout target. The bank’s net income reached 3.81 billion kronor (US$447 million) in the three months through December, it said yesterday. The Stockholm-based lender maintained its dividend policy of returning 75 percent of profit to owners, approving a payout of 10.70 kronor per share for last year. That compares with 11.35 kronor a year earlier. Net interest income slipped 1 percent to 5.76 billion kronor, while net commission income was unchanged at 2.88 billion kronor, Swedbank said. The lender’s total income was up 1 percent in the period.

  ENERGY

  Dominion buying Questar

  Dominion Resources plans to spend US$4.4 billion to acquire Questar in a big reach to the West for the East Coast energy company. Dominion is a power producer in the mid-Atlantic region. Questar is in the Rockies and a principal source of gas supply to western states. There was a rush of deals last year among energy companies that are bulking up with demand weak and energy prices plunging. That includes utilities, which are increasingly switching from coal to natural gas, as they seek more control over their cost input. Dominion, with Questar, would serve about 4.8 million electric and gas customer accounts in seven states and would operate more than 24,944km of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipelines. Questar shareholders will receive US$25 per share, a 23 percent premium to its Friday closing price of US$20.39.

  GAMING

  Nintendo profit tumbles

  Nintendo Co reported a 36 percent fall in third-quarter profit after a lack of hit game titles hurt holiday sales of its Wii U and 3DS hardware. Net income was ￥29.1 billion in the three months to December, the Kyoto-based company reported yesterday. That compares with the ￥23 billion average of four analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Nintendo reported a ￥45.2 billion profit a year earlier, when a currency windfall boosted earnings. The firm relies on software titles to drive demand for machines such as the 3DS handheld player and Wii U.
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