Japan's KDDI says 9-month profit rises 18.2 pct

TOKYO - Japanese mobile carrier KDDI Corp. said Friday its profit rose18.2 percent in the first nine months of the fiscal year through December on one-time stock gains and lower handset subsidies.

KDDI, which did not break down quarterly earnings, reported a 253.92 billion yen ($2.88 billion) profit for the period.

Nine-month sales declined 0.3 percent to 2.63 trillion yen ($29.78 billion) as sales continued to lag behind rivals Softbank Corp. and NTT DoCoMo Inc.

For the full year through March, Tokyo-based KDDI lowered its sales forecast to 3.5 trillion yen from its earlier projection for 3.7 trillion yen because of the lagging sales of mobile phones.

The drop in handset subsidies refers to the money given as incentives to retailers to encourage sales.

KDDI shares dipped 0.3 percent to 573,000 yen ($6,490). Earnings were announced after trading ended.

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