UK mobile phone giant Vodafone, the world's biggest mobile operator by revenue, has announced the sale of its 3.2 per cent stake in China Mobile for around £4.3 billion.
The sale is the first of what is expected to be several sales of minority holdings as part of Newbury-based Vodafone’s strategy to focus on core markets as it tries to improve its share price.
The buyers of the stake, of which it is thought there may be several, have not been identified.
China Mobile, which is 74 per cent held by state-owned China Mobile Communications, is the world’s biggest phone carrier by market value and subscriber numbers.
Vodafone said that around 70 per cent of the net proceeds of the China Mobile sale will be returned to shareholders through a share buyback, with the remainder earmarked to reduce the group's debt.
Vodafone initially bought a 2.18 per cent stake in China Mobile in 2000, increasing its holding to 3.2 per cent in 2002.
Commenting, Vodafone's chief executive Vittorio Colao said: "Today's transaction achieves a near doubling of Vodafone's original investment in China Mobile and combines our stated portfolio strategy with ongoing cooperation with China's leading telecommunications company."
Vodafone will continue to cooperate with China Mobile in areas such as roaming, network roadmap development, multinational customers and green technology.
Vodafone’s other holdings include 45 per cent of Verizon Wireless and 44 per cent of Paris-based SFR.
