Local telecoms firm Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) expects revenue in the first quarter to have risen from a year ago, supported by a growth in the number of subscribers, its president said on Tuesday.

"Our subscriber take-up was better than expected in the first quarter this year. Revenues better than last year too," Napoleon Nazareno told reporters in a text message.

He did not give any figures.

PLDT said last month it expects service revenues to rise 5 percent to P150 billion ($3 billion) for the whole of 2009, helped by an increase in its mobile subscriber base.

PLDT aims to sign up 3.5 million new mobile phone customers this year, down from more than 5 million in 2008, amid slower economic growth. At the end of 2008, the company's cellular phone clients totalled 35.2 million.

PLDT has forecast core profit to rise 5 percent to P40 billion this year from P38.1 billion in 2008, largely helped by a cut in corporate income tax rate to 30 percent from 35 percent.

Shares of PLDT eased 1.1 percent to P2,195 at 0351 GMT in a broader market down 0.4 percent.