SINGAPORE Telecommunications flagged a cautious near-term outlook on Thursday after logging a rise in annual profit, as the Iran war spurs inflation and currency volatility across its key Asian markets.
The company said it has no direct operations in the Middle East, but most of its key markets are net energy importers and vulnerable to global energy price swings, which could translate into higher operating costs, softer consumer and business spending and slower economic growth.
Singtel said it is taking a more cautious approach to its near-term outlook and expects the earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) growth to be in the low- to mid-single digits due to the Middle East uncertainty. The company logged a nearly 9 percent rise in EBIT to S$1.50 billion ($1.17 billion) in 2026.
"We are keeping a close watch on the evolving situation for potential second-order effects on stagflation and weaker consumer and business sentiment," said Group Chief Executive Officer Yuen Kuan Moon.
The group said existing long-term power contracts should help cushion the impact, but cautioned that currency volatility across its regional markets could weigh on translated earnings.
Southeast Asia's largest telecom operator posted an underlying net profit of S$2.77 billion for the year ended March 2026, up from S$2.47 billion in the previous year, but below a Visible Alpha consensus estimate of S$2.82 billion.
Post-tax profit contributions from regional associates, including India's Bharti Airtel and Thailand's Advanced Info Service (AIS), rose 11 percent to S$1.96 billion ($1.53 billion), while Australian unit Optus saw operating revenue increase by 2 percent.
"Our regional associates Airtel and AIS were standout performers, delivering solid contributions to the group," said the Group CEO.
The group declared a final dividend of 10.3 Singapore cents per share, higher than the 10 Singapore cents apiece announced last year.
Singtel also laid out its total capital expenditure plans for 2027, saying it expects to spend around S$3 billion and that it will fork out an extra S$1.2 billion for data centers and AI-related purposes.
