HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- South Korea's SK Telecom said Tuesday it isn't planning to buy a stake in China's second-largest mobile operator, China Unicom, as reported in the Financial Times.
"It isn't true," said Chief Financial Officer Sung Min Ha.
Ha declined to comment further, but Hoon Do, a spokesman at SK Telecom said while SK Telecom has been looking at possibilities to enter China's mobile market, nothing has been determined about an investment in China Unicom.
The Financial Times quoted unnamed bankers as saying SK Telecom plans to buy a 10% stake in China Unicom in a deal that would be worth US$1.1 billion.
China Unicom declined to comment.
SK Telecom has been looking to invest and expand its operations overseas as its domestic market nears saturation with more than seven out of 10 people carrying a cellphone.
Last year, SK Telecom held talks with an Indian telecommunications company for a potential investment, according to Ha, but discussions ended due to differences over terms.
In January 2005, the company set up a wireless joint venture in the U.S. with Earthlink to offer wireless voice and data services in the country.
-By Yun-Hee Kim and Ernest Kong; Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2832-2330; yun-hee.kim@dowjones.com
-Edited by Andrew Bullard
(END) Dow Jones Newswires "
Posted to the site on 6th June 2006
Posted to: www.cellular-news.com/story/17685.php