MANILA, Philippines -- Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), the country's biggest company by market value, said Thursday its capital expenditure in 2008 is estimated to reach P25 billion or about $600 million.

The amount, which is as big as last year's capex budget, will include investments in providing additional wireless, broadband and international bandwidth capacity and upgrading the fixed-line network, and investments in the booming business process outsourcing industry.

PLDT's actual capital expenditure in the first nine months of 2007 totaled P14.5 billion.

"PLDT's capital expenditure will benefit, among others, the offshoring-and-outsourcing industry by providing the needed telco infrastructure to enhance the industry's global competitiveness," the company told Manila's stock exchange.

PLDT did not say how it would finance this year's capex budget.

PLDT is controlled by Hong Kong-listed conglomerate First Pacific Co. Ltd. and is 20 percent owned by the group of Japan's Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp. (NTT) and NTT DoCoMo Inc.

Shares in PLDT were trading P30.00 or 1.0 percent higher at P2,990.00 in late trade Thursday. (By Enrico dela Cruz)

USEFUL REFERENCE:
http://www.pse.org.ph/html/disclosure/pdf/2008/pdf/dc2008-1252_TEL.pdf

($1 = P40.94)