SASAC: There is no Unicom breakup plan

There are currently no plans to restructure and sell the network assets of mobile operator China Unicom, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) said Tuesday. The company, which is expected to report a 12-22% increase in net profits to US$711-776 million Wednesday, has seen its share price rise by more than 60% in the last year in response to continuing rumors of restructuring. It is believed that China Unicom will sell its CDMA networks to fixed-line operator China Telecom with its GSM and other networks then being merged with those of China Netcom, the country's other fixed-line service provider. This would likely ease the issuing of third generation (3G) mobile licenses. However, SASAC – which is the company's ultimate shareholder – said there were currently no plans to break up Unicom, the South China Morning Post reported.