Dutch telecom KPN 2Q earnings fall on restructuring charges

The Dutch telecommunications company Royal KPN NV said Wednesday its net profit fell 12 percent in the second quarter, due to restructuring charges, higher financing costs and taxes.

However, analysts said the company's underlying performance was better than expected and shares rose 5.1 percent to euro10.65 (US$16.74) in Amsterdam.

The company said net profit was euro353 million (US$555 million), down from euro401 million a year ago, while sales were up 22 percent to euro3.66 billion (US$5.75 billion).

Notably, the company added 780,000 customers at its German mobile telephone arm E-Plus in the quarter, and it lost fewer fixed line customers in …