Bharti shares gain; Idea's results seen as positive

Reuters Market Eye - Bharti Airtel Ltd's shares gain 5 percent on hopes of better-than-expected earnings for January-March, taking cues from Idea Cellular Ltd which beat March quarter earnings estimates.

Idea is much smaller than Bharti in revenue terms, but both mobile carriers operate on GSM technology and have similar kinds of subscribers.

As well, both companies' mainstay is second-generation (2G) voice although there has been a greater push in recent months to increase revenue from mobile data.

"Idea's numbers are positive ... for Bharti Airtel. They imply that the subscriber growth would normalise," said an analyst tracking the sector.

Idea shares were up 7.6 percent at 11.43 a.m.

 

(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi)