China Unicom Ltd, the smaller of the nation's two mobile-phone carriers, reported profit more than doubled last year after the company lured more subscribers with reduced rates.

Net income rose to 9.3 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) from a restated 3.8 billion yuan a year earlier, the Beijing-based company said in a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Sales climbed to 99.54 billion yuan from 95.3 billion yuan. The telco said on January 30 that 2007 net income would more than double from a year earlier.