The three major telecom carriers came under collective pressure, with China Mobile Ltd (00941) falling 2.17% to HK$78.75, China Unicom (00762) declining 2.04% to HK$5.445, and China Telecom (00728) dropping 1.74% to HK$4.505 as of press time.
On the news front, China Mobile Ltd (00941) released its third-quarter results on October 20, reporting Q3 operating revenue of 242.3 billion yuan, down 3.4% year-on-year, with core business revenue of 205.1 billion yuan, down 5.1% year-on-year, and profit attributable to shareholders of 27.3 billion yuan, down 12% year-on-year. For the first three quarters combined, operating revenue totaled 780.3 billion yuan, down 1.8% year-on-year, while profit attributable to shareholders reached 106.2 billion yuan, down 7.9% year-on-year.
Citi noted in a recent research report that mainland China's telecommunications industry revenue may remain under pressure in the third quarter, with industry revenue falling 2.2% year-on-year in the first eight months of 2026, primarily reflecting a VAT-driven reset rather than a comparable deterioration in underlying demand. The bank believes this slowdown is largely priced in, and investor focus is shifting toward AI infrastructure monetization and dividend support.
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