Revenue fears hit Vodafone shares

UK revenues were driven by mobile broadband and messaging

Vodafone's shares have fallen 14% after the mobile phone giant warned revenue would be hit by the economic slowdown.

They fell 20.25 pence to 129.0p after boss Arun Sarin said it faced a more "challenging operating environment".

It said that revenue in the year to 31 March, 2009 would be at the bottom of the predicted �39.8bn to �40.7bn range.

However, Vodafone added that cost cutting would mean that its profits for the current financial year were still set to meet its original forecasts.

Cost focus

In the three months to 30 June, Vodafone's revenue totalled �9.8bn - up 19.1% from a year earlier and in line with market forecasts.

The economic environment has taken its toll on Vodafone Richard Hunter, Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers See Vodafone's share price

"Whilst we expect revenue around the bottom of the outlook range, our continued focus on cost reduction enables us to reiterate our operating profit and cash flow guidance for the year," Mr Sarin said.

The company still expects to make operating profit of �11bn to �11.5bn, with emerging markets forecast to perform strongly.

Mr Sarin is due to step down later this month and will be replaced by his deputy Vittorio Colao.

Competition

In the UK, Vodafone said that service revenue increased by 2.1%, driven by mobile broadband and messaging.

However, it said voice revenue declined because of stiff competition in the UK market and signs of an economic slowdown.

"The economic environment has taken its toll on Vodafone," said Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers.

"The chief executive would not have wished for these numbers as a swansong," he added.

Vodafone said it added 8.5 million subscribers worldwide in the three months to the end of June, taking the total to 269 million.

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