Airtel active subscriber dip, muted 4G additions temporary, say analysts

Bharti Airtel, which reported a 1.2 million dip in active subscribers in October, is not expected to continue the same trend going forward as analysts say this is a one-time phenomena and does not lead to concerns over the company’s fundamentals.

The telecom operator’s active subscriber decline in October was the highest in the last 17 months, data from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) showed on Wednesday. The reasons for the same can be attributed to the transition of lower-end subscribers to Jio Bharat 4G phone, cleaning of inactive subscriber base by the company, as well as some impact of the tariff hikes taken by Airtel at entry-level in 2023, according to some analysts.