iWorld
Net mobile subscribers decline in May: TRAI
Mumbai: India’s telecom market saw a 6.2 million net decline in mobile subscribers at the end of May, according to the latest monthly subscription data released by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Reliance Jio was the only wireless access service provider that added 3.5 million mobile subscribers. Previous data shows that the telecom company added 4.7 million mobile subscribers in April.
Bharti Airtel saw its mobile subscribers reduce by 4.6 million (including the subscribers of Tata Teleservices), the highest loss, followed closely by Vodafone Idea which lost 4.2 million customers. This is several multiples higher than the subscriber decline reported in April which stood at 0.51 million and 1.8 million for Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, respectively.
Similarly, the number of telephone subscribers came down from 1,203.47 million at the end of April to 1,198.50 million at the end of May, at a monthly decline rate of 0.41 per cent. TRAI had reported a monthly growth rate of 0.19 per cent and 1.12 per cent for telephone subscribers in the preceding months of April and March, respectively. Also, Urban and rural telephone monthly subscription decline rates for May stood at 0.47 per cent and 0.34 per cent, respectively.
The overall tele-density in India decreased from 88.27 per cent at the end of April to 87.84 per cent at the end of May. The share of urban and rural subscribers out of total number of subscribers stood at 55.17 per cent and 44.83 per cent, respectively.
As per reports received from 438 operators in May, the number of broadband subscribers decreased from 782.86 million at the end of April to 780.27 million at the end of May with a monthly decline rate of 0.33 per cent, according to TRAI data. While mobile subscribers and fixed wireless subscribers.
(Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Point to Point Radio & VSAT) saw monthly decline rates of 0.38 per cent and 2.45 per cent respectively, wired subscribers grew to 22.74 million from 22.42 million at a 1.43 per cent monthly growth rate.
The top five service providers made up 98.80 per cent of the market share of the total broadband subscribers including wired and wireless at the end of May. These included Reliance Jio Infocomm (434.23 million), Bharti Airtel (192. 73 million), Vodafone Idea (119.64 million), BSNL (22.4 million) and Atria Convergence (1.87 million).
Gaming
Bluestone FY26 revenue rises to Rs 2,436 crore, turns profitable
Q4 profit at Rs 31 crore, full-year profit at Rs 13 crore vs loss last year.
MUMBAI: From sparkle to numbers, Bluestone seems to be polishing more than just jewellery this year. Bluestone Jewellery and Lifestyle Limited reported a sharp turnaround in FY26, with revenue from operations rising to Rs 2,436 crore (Rs 24,364 million), up from Rs 1,770 crore (Rs 17,700 million) in FY25. The company posted a full-year profit of Rs 13 crore (Rs 131.79 million), a significant recovery from a loss of Rs 222 crore (Rs 2,218 million) a year ago.
Total income for the year stood at Rs 2,486 crore (Rs 24,860 million), compared to Rs 1,830 crore (Rs 18,300 million) in the previous year, reflecting both topline growth and improved operational momentum.
The March quarter, however, told a more nuanced story. Revenue from operations came in at Rs 681 crore (Rs 6,814 million), down from Rs 748 crore (Rs 7,486 million) in the year-ago period, though higher than Rs 461 crore (Rs 4,613 million) in the preceding December quarter. Net profit for Q4 stood at Rs 31 crore (Rs 311.81 million), compared to Rs 68 crore (Rs 688 million) a year earlier, but a clear reversal from a loss of Rs 51 crore (Rs 512 million) in Q3.
Margins were shaped by higher input costs, with raw material consumption rising to Rs 2,204 crore (Rs 22,043 million) for the full year, alongside employee benefit expenses of Rs 282 crore (Rs 2,824 million) and finance costs of Rs 210 crore (Rs 2,104 million). Other expenses came in at Rs 371 crore (Rs 3,715 million), slightly lower than Rs 393 crore (Rs 3,938 million) in FY25.
On the balance sheet front, total assets expanded to Rs 4,961 crore (Rs 49,610 million) as of March 31, 2026, from Rs 3,532 crore (Rs 35,322 million) a year earlier, driven largely by a surge in inventories to Rs 2,672 crore (Rs 26,718 million). Equity also strengthened to Rs 1,803 crore (Rs 18,030 million), nearly doubling from Rs 911 crore (Rs 9,107 million).
Cash flows reflected the cost of growth. Net cash used in operating activities stood at Rs 199 crore (Rs 1,990 million), while investing activities saw an outflow of Rs 239 crore (Rs 2,392 million). Financing activities, however, generated Rs 497 crore (Rs 4,971 million), helping the company end the year with cash and cash equivalents of Rs 108 crore (Rs 1,075 million), up from Rs 49 crore (Rs 487 million).
Earnings per share for FY26 came in at Rs 1.10, a sharp improvement from a negative Rs 79.74 in FY25, underlining the shift from losses to profitability.
With revenue scaling up, costs still glittering on the higher side, and profitability finally back in the black, BlueStone’s FY26 performance suggests a business mid-transition less about shine alone, and more about sustaining it.
