ABU DHABI, 27 October 2003 — Government-owned UAE telecoms operator Etisalat reported yesterday 2.21 billion dirhams ($600 million) in net profits for the first nine months of 2003, up 19 percent from the year-earlier period. The company said the increase came on the back of revenues totaling 6.845 billion dirhams ($1.86 billion) for the period ending Sept. 30, compared with 5.859 billion ($1.6 billion) reported in 2002. Operating profit rose to 2.153 billion dirhams ($586 million) compared to 1.773 billion dirhams ($482 million). Total assets of the telecom provider at the end of the third quarter were valued at 16.9 billion dirhams ($4.6 billion). The company announced on Saturday a 20 to 25 percent reduction on tariffs for domestic telephone calls.