Bharti Airtel Defers September Quarter Earnings Announcement, Shares Fall

Bharti Airtel said on Tuesday it has postponed its second-quarter earnings report to November 14, as the wireless operator sought clarity on the court ruling asking telecom firms to cough up overdue payments to the government.

Shares of the company, which was expected to release its quarterly numbers later in the day, dropped 3.3 per cent in early trade.

The New Delhi-based company's board, which met earlier in the day, accepted the management's recommendation to shift the September-quarter results to November 14, the telecom operator said in a statement filed to the stock exchanges.

The Supreme Court last week upheld a demand by the country's telecoms department (DoT) that wireless carriers pay Rs 92,000 crore ($12.97 billion) in overdue levies and interest.

The company said it is approaching the telecom department to seek clarity on the total amount involved and seek their support to deal with this "adverse outcome".

Airtel's rivals have also expressed concerns about the court ruling. Loss-making smaller rival Vodafone Idea said it will ask the government for relief on payments of at least $4 billion after the court ruling.