CAIRO: Egyptian mobile operator Mobinil said on Tuesday it would delay the distribution of cash dividends from its 2010 profits due to the country’s economic and political situation.

In February, Mobinil said its net income fell about 38 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, hit after fierce competition forced it to keep prices low and spend more on promotions.

The firm, also known as the Egyptian Company for Mobile Services, also said in February it had lost around LE 80-100 million ($13 -$17 million) during the protests that led to the toppling of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

"In light of the current political and economic situation in Egypt, the company’s General Assembly decided to postpone its decision on distributing cash dividends for the financial year that ended Dec. 31, 2010," Mobinil’s spokeswoman said in an email to Reuters.

Mobinil had said in January it would pay a dividend of LE 9.19 per share for the first nine months of 2010 on Jan. 27 to shareholders as of Jan. 23.

The company’s last dividend payment, for the second half of 2009, was LE 7.50 per share.