Tariff hikes signal better profitability for telcos going forward: ICRA

The latest telecom tariff hikes announced by telcos can yield additional operating profits of around Rs 20,000 crore for the industry once they are fully absorbed, ICRA said on Friday.

With an improved financial metrics, the industry will have the headroom to undertake deleveraging as well as fund capex for the technology upgrade, and network expansion, Ankit Jain, Vice President and Sector Head of Corporate Ratings, ICRA said.

The domestic rating agency's view comes after Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel announced they would roll out tariff hikes - in the range of 10-27 per cent - marking the first major telecom tariff increase in the industry in a span of two-and-a-half years.

"The latest round of tariff hikes wherein the telcos increased the prepaid tariffs by around 15-20 per cent will provide the traction in the (Average Revenue Per User) ARPU levels and can result in additional operating profits of around Rs 20,000 crore for the industry once these hikes are fully absorbed," ICR