China Netcom H1 earnings down 7.7%

China Netcom Group Corp. (Hong Kong) Ltd., the No. 2 fixed-line phone firm in the Mainland, posted a 7.7 percent fall in first-half earnings on Wednesday as more users switched to mobile phones, Reuters reported. The company had earnings reduced from 7.688 billion yuan (961 million US dollars) a year ago to 7.09 billion yuan ($889.8 million) for the six months ended June 30. Analysts and industry leaders now hope Beijing will issue third-generation (3G) mobile licences in 2007, including one for Netcom, in a move that could jumpstart growth as the company diversifies from a fixed-line company to one that also provides mobile services, said Reuters.