Oman Telecom-munications (Omantel) has reported a 10 per cent fall in fourth-quarter profit, missing analysts' estimates as revenue from text messages and international calls declined.

The former monopoly's profit drop follows a prolonged slump at smaller rival Nawras, a unit of Qatar Telecom, as Internet-based services including instant messaging and Voice-Over-IP phone calls hurt margins.

This trend, while global, is more pronounced among Gulf telecoms companies due to the region's large expatriate population, which is increasingly shifting away from conventional calls and texts to contact home.

Omantel reportedly made a net profit of RO26.19 million ($68.03 million) in the three months to December 31, down from 29.2m rials in the year-earlier period.

The company's fourth-quarter revenue was RO116 million when compared to RO119.5 million a year ago.-Reuters