Singapore Telecommunications shares rebounded on Friday as investors focused on stronger operating trends across its regional businesses rather than a steep drop in reported earnings. The stock rose as much as 4.2% to S$4.43 in morning trade after falling 0.9% on Thursday, when the company posted a 71.6% decline in first-quarter net profit. By 11:12 a.m., the shares were trading at S$4.40, up 3.5% from Thursday's S$4.25 close, and by 11:50 a.m. about 22.4 million shares had changed hands. The sharp fall in headline profit reflected a tougher comparison with the prior-year quarter, which was boosted by exceptional gains from the partial sale of a stake in Airtel and one-off items linked to the Intouch Holdings-Gulf Energy merger. Stripping out those effects, underlying net profit for the three months ended June 30 increased 21% to S$831 million, supported by Airtel, AIS, NCS, Optus and the group's Digital InfraCo division. Overall net profit came in at S$818 million. The move in the shares suggests the market is placing more weight on the company's push to streamline its portfolio and concentrate on core connectivity and digital infrastructure operations across Asia, especially as conditions improve in India, Thailand and Australia.