MILAN (Reuters) -The recently appointed chief executive of Telecom Italia (BIT:TLIT) said on Wednesday he hoped the former phone monopoly could surprise markets with positive first-half results.
"On August 3 we will publish results for the first half of the year", CEO Pietro Labriola said at the presentation of the group's new communication campaign. "We hope to surprise with positive results."
Labriola, who was confirmed in the CEO's role only in January, also said that the company's future strategy of separation of the landline grid from its service businesses was not a reason to delay hitting the company's targets.
"Business is business. It goes on in parallel to the topic of company's future", he told journalists during a news conference.
TIM's core profit fell sharply in the first quarter hit by shrinking revenues in its hyper-competitive domestic market, where demand for connectivity weakened after a pandemic-driven surge.
The company has signed a preliminary agreement with state lender CDP over the possible creation of a single national network operator.