Egyptian mobile phone operator Mobinil posted a quarterly net loss of LE177 million, blaming political turmoil in the wake of the uprising that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak. Mobinil posted net income of LE342 million in the same quarter of 2010, it said in a statement. "The results clearly illustrate the extent of the challenges the business was facing in a turbulent political, social and economic environment," chief executive Yves Gauthier said on Monday. Political turmoil following the overthrow of Mubarak froze business activity in Egypt. Also, Mobinil was hit by a drop in subscribers who took offense at a cartoon tweeted by the firm's founder in June. Business tycoon and politician Naguib Sawiris had tweeted a cartoon of Mickey Mouse with a long beard, and Minnie Mouse veiled in black. Some people considered the cartoon offensive to Islam, prompting some Muslims to call for a boycott of Mobinil. The firm said on Monday it was confident "improvements in the general environment and the normalization of the competitive landscape" would put it in a position to deliver better results. It said it would deploy several initiatives to stimulate growth but did not elaborate. Mobinil said revenue in the fourth quarter of 2011 was LE2.54 billion, and that its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were LE598 million. The number of subscribers at the end of 2011 was 32.9 million. Shares in Mobinil closed down 5.1 percent on Monday. The main index was up 0.8 percent.
