UAE telecom firm du neared a 30-percent share in the mobile phone market at the end of September, its chief executive said on Sunday, well ahead of its original target for the end of 2009.

"We have reached close to 30 percent market share at the end of September, ahead of the scheduled end of 2009," said Osman Sultan, du's chief executive, citing faster subscription growth.

Du telecom broke Etisalat's virtual monopoly when it started operations in 2007. - Reuters