Verizon profits soar in sluggish market

The biggest US local telephone company, Verizon, has posted a doubling in profits, but claimed its core market was still sluggish.

The firm reported a net profit of $4.4bn during the three months to end-September, compared with just $1.9bn a year earlier.

But its tally of telephone lines in service dropped by 4%, forcing it to seek revenues by diversifying into long distance, wireless and data services.

The improved results also reflected gains on sales of assets and investments, and one-off tax benefits.

When these gains were stripped out, the firm's earnings more than halved.

More indicative of the state of the market, analysts said, were Verizon's revenue figures, which recorded a rise of just 1.2% year on year.

The markets were unimpressed, sending Verizon's shares down by 4% after the earnings announcement.