KUALA LUMPUR: Shares in Opcom Holdings Bhd continued its uptrend in early trade Wednesday, rising to its highest in over six years.

       The fibre optic cables manufacturer jumped 10.81%, or 12 sen to RM1.23, its highest since April 2015 at 9.21am. The counter also saw brisk trading with 37.7 million shares done. It has risen almost 220% so far this year.

       Opcom returned to the black in the first quarter ended June 30, with a net profit of RM2.64mil against a net loss of RM752,000 a year ago.

       Revenue for the quarter jumped 192.95% to RM22.93mil against RM7.83mil in the same period a year earlier.

       Meanwhile, Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa said the construction of new telecommunication towers for broadband and 4G services would be implemented immediately.

       He said tenders for the projects would be issued within four weeks from now.

       “In my and the government’s views, the issue of connectivity and the internet is considered a human right. We want to see all Malaysians, whether in the interior or wherever they are, they need to get this access, not only connectivity but with high quality,” Bernama quoted him as saying.

       He added that his ministry also targeted the transition of coverage from 3G to 4G to be fully achieved by the end of this year.