BELLEVUE (dpa-AFX) - Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Mobile US reported a surprisingly strong increase in the number of its contract customers in the fourth quarter. In net terms, this rose by 1.82 million, the company announced in Bellevue on Wednesday evening. For the full year, it added just over 6.4 million contract customers. That was slightly more than the 6.2 million to 6.4 million recently projected.

In after-hours U.S. trading, shares in T-Mobile rose one and a half percent in an initial reaction. Papers of Deutsche Telekom, the group's parent company, were up 0.5 percent at the start of Thursday morning in a slightly weaker market.

T-Mobile US spoke of record growth in customer numbers. This is probably the eighth year in a row that the company has recorded the most new customers among U.S. providers, according to estimates, the statement added. At the end of 2022, the company had a total of 113.6 million customers.

T-Mobile US had entered the market in 2020 with the acquisition of rival Sprint, in order to cut off the water from U.S. market leaders Verizon and AT&T. In recent years, the U.S. has become by far the largest part of the Group for the Bonn-based company./he/men/mis/jha/