Bharti Tele-Ventures edged up 1.32% to Rs 34.50 on BSE in early trades propelled higher by reports that the government may hike FDI limit in the telecom sector to 74% from 49%.

By 9:58 IST, around 2,600 Bharti Tele-Ventures (BTL) shares were exchanged. The scrip has been witnessing an upsurge for quite some time now. In fact, between 19 March and 19 May 2003, the scrip of the telecom services provider climbed 26% to Rs 34.05 from Rs 27.05.

The new reports on a probable hike in foreign direct investment in the telecom sector comes in the wake of an earlier move (in April 2003) by the Centre to defer a decision on FDI in the sector on the ground of  security concerns. The overall foreign holding in Bharti currently is at 47.28%, close to the FDI ceiling of 49%. As on 31 March 2003, promoters hold 46.55% in BTL, while the public and institutions hold 2.28% and 2.75%, respectively.

BTL has posted impressive results for the fourth quarter ended 31 March 2003. For Q4, Bharti Tele-Ventures reported a net profit of Rs 1.06 crore compared to a net loss of Rs 2.45 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. Total revenue increased from Rs 68 lakh in MQ-02 to Rs 4.48 crore in MQ-03.

For the full year, the company posted its first ever profit after getting listed on the domestic bourses, recording a net profit of Rs 22 lakh (Rs 12 lakh) on a total revenue of Rs 18.89 crore (Rs 3.95 crore).