JOHANNESBURG, Aug 24 – MTN Group reported a sharp increase in adjusted earnings for the first half of 2026, supported by stronger subscriber growth and double-digit expansion in service revenue across several of its African markets.
Africa’s largest mobile operator said adjusted headline earnings per share rose to 793 cents in the six months ended June 30, from 654 cents a year earlier, representing a 21.3% increase.
The Johannesburg-based telecom group serves more than 317 million customers across 19 markets, giving its performance significant exposure to consumer demand and currency conditions across Africa and the Middle East.
Group service revenue, excluding currency movements, increased 17.5% to 115.3 billion rand ($7.21 billion). Growth was particularly strong in MTN Nigeria, where service revenue increased 25.7%, and MTN Ghana, which recorded growth of 32.3%. Cameroon, Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire also contributed to the group’s revenue expansion.
MTN South Africa delivered more modest growth, with service revenue increasing 1.5% despite competitive pressure in the prepaid market.
Underlying profitability also strengthened during the period. Core earnings increased 24.4% to 56 billion rand, while the group’s EBITDA margin expanded by 3.1 percentage points to 47.1%, indicating improved operating profitability.
However, reported headline earnings per share declined 5.8%. MTN attributed the weaker reported figure partly to a non-cash impairment on its 49% stake in Irancell, following developments linked to the Iran conflict, as well as foreign-exchange losses in South Sudan.
The contrasting performance between adjusted and reported earnings highlights the impact of non-operating and currency-related factors on MTN’s financial results. While underlying operations benefited from subscriber and service revenue growth, geopolitical and foreign-exchange pressures continued to affect the group’s reported profitability.
MTN’s latest results underscore the importance of its diversified African footprint, with stronger performances in Nigeria, Ghana and several other markets helping offset weaker conditions in parts of the portfolio.
