China Telecom 20-F 28 Apr 20 2019 FY Annual report (foreign) Financial data

Cover Page

Cover Page	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019shares
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	20-F
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2019
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2019
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	CHINA TELECOM CORP LTD
Entity Central Index Key	0001191255
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Address, Country	CN
Document Annual Report	true
Document Transition Report	false
Document Shell Company Report	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	67,054,958,321
ADS [Member]
Document Information [Line Items]
Trading Symbol	CHA
Title of 12(b) Security	American depositary shares
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Overseas listed H shares [member]
Document Information [Line Items]
No Trading Symbol Flag	true
Title of 12(b) Security	H shares, par value RMB1.00 per share
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	13,877,410,000

Consolidated Statements of Fina

Consolidated Statements of Financial Position - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents	¥ 20,791	¥ 16,666
Short-term bank deposits	3,628	6,814
Accounts receivable, net	21,489	20,475
Contract assets	474	478
Inventories	2,880	4,832
Prepayments and other current assets	22,219	23,619
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss	39
Income tax recoverable	1,662	121
Total current assets	73,182	73,005
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment, net	410,008	407,795
Construction in progress	59,206	66,644
Right-of-use assets	61,549
Lease prepayments		21,568
Goodwill	29,923	29,922
Intangible assets	16,349	14,161
Interests in associates	39,192	38,051
Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income	1,458	852
Deferred tax assets	7,577	6,544
Other assets	4,687	4,840
Total non-current assets	629,949	590,377
Total assets	703,131	663,382
Current liabilities
Short-term debt	42,527	49,537
Current portion of long-term debt	4,444	1,139
Accounts payable	102,616	107,887
Accrued expenses and other payables	48,516	43,497
Contract liabilities	54,388	55,783
Income tax payable	243	601
Current portion of finance lease obligations/lease liabilities	11,569	101
Current portion of deferred revenues	358	375
Total current liabilities	264,661	258,920
Non-current liabilities
Long-term debt	32,051	44,852
Finance lease obligations/lease liabilities	30,577	115
Deferred revenues	1,097	1,454
Deferred tax liabilities	19,078	13,138
Other non-current liabilities	627	804
Total non-current liabilities	83,430	60,363
Total liabilities	348,091	319,283
Equity
Share capital	80,932	80,932
Reserves	271,578	262,137
Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company	352,510	343,069
Non-controlling interests	2,530	1,030
Total equity	355,040	344,099
Total liabilities and equity	¥ 703,131	¥ 663,382

Consolidated Statements of Comp

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions, shares in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Profit or loss [abstract]
Operating revenues	¥ 375,734	¥ 377,124	¥ 366,229
Operating expenses
Depreciation and amortization	(88,145)	(75,493)	(74,951)
Network operations and support	(109,799)	(116,062)	(103,969)
Selling, general and administrative	(57,361)	(59,422)	(58,434)
Personnel expenses	(63,567)	(59,736)	(56,043)
Other operating expenses	(27,792)	(37,697)	(45,612)
Total operating expenses	(346,664)	(348,410)	(339,009)
Operating income	29,070	28,714	27,220
Net finance costs	(3,639)	(2,708)	(3,291)
Investment income	30	38	147
Income from investments in associates	1,573	2,104	877
Earnings before income tax	27,034	28,148	24,953
Income tax	(6,322)	(6,810)	(6,192)
Profit for the year	20,712	21,338	18,761
Other comprehensive income for the year, Items that will not be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Change in fair value of investments in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income	604	(324)
Deferred tax on change in fair value of investments in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income	(147)	82
Other comprehensive income that will not be reclassified to profit or loss, net of tax	457	(242)
Other comprehensive income for the year, Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Change in fair value of available-for-sale equity securities			(400)
Deferred tax on change in fair value of available-for-sale equity securities			100
Exchange difference on translation of financial statements of subsidiaries outside mainland China	102	154	(259)
Share of other comprehensive income of associates	(2)	(7)	7
Other comprehensive income that may be reclassified to profit or loss, net of tax	100	147	(552)
Other comprehensive income for the year, net of tax	557	(95)	(552)
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,269	21,243	18,209
Profit attributable to
Equity holders of the Company	20,517	21,210	18,617
Non-controlling interests	195	128	144
Profit for the year	20,712	21,338	18,761
Total comprehensive income attributable to
Equity holders of the Company	21,074	21,115	18,065
Non-controlling interests	195	128	144
Total comprehensive income for the year	¥ 21,269	¥ 21,243	¥ 18,209
Basic earnings per share	¥ 0.25	¥ 0.26	¥ 0.23
Number of shares	80,932	80,932	80,932

Consolidated Statements of Chan

Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Total	Share capital [member]	Capital reserve [member]	Share premium [member]	Surplus reserve [member]	General risk reserve [member]	Other reserves [Member]	Exchange reserve [member]	Retained earnings [member]	Attributable to equity holders of the company [member]	Non-controlling interests [member]
Beginning balance at Dec. 31, 2016	¥ 316,348	¥ 80,932	¥ 17,160	¥ 10,746	¥ 72,611		¥ 711	¥ (622)	¥ 133,839	¥ 315,377	¥ 971
Profit for the year	18,761								18,617	18,617	144
Other comprehensive income for the year	(552)						(293)	(259)		(552)
Total comprehensive income for the year	18,209						(293)	(259)	18,617	18,065	144
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group	(87)		(80)						(7)	(87)
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	(150)		46							46	(196)
Distribution to non-controlling interests	(89)										(89)
Dividends	(7,530)								(7,530)	(7,530)
Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve					1,686				(1,686)
Others	(4)						(4)			(4)
Ending balance (Changes in accounting policies [member]) at Dec. 31, 2017	2,974				302				2,673	2,975	(1)
Ending balance (Restated balance [member]) at Dec. 31, 2017	329,671	80,932	17,126	10,746	74,599		414	(881)	145,906	328,842	829
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2017	326,697	80,932	17,126	10,746	74,297		414	(881)	143,233	325,867	830
Profit for the year	21,338								21,210	21,210	128
Other comprehensive income for the year	(95)						(249)	154		(95)
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,243						(249)	154	21,210	21,115	128
Disposal of investments in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income							(5)		5
Disposal of a subsidiary	5										5
Contribution from non-controlling interests	945		680							680	265
Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests	(20)										(20)
Distribution to non-controlling interests	(177)										(177)
Dividends	(7,568)								(7,568)	(7,568)
Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve					1,875				(1,875)
Ending balance (Changes in accounting policies [member]) at Dec. 31, 2018	(2,443)				(243)				(2,197)	(2,440)	(3)
Ending balance (Restated balance [member]) at Dec. 31, 2018	341,656	80,932	17,806	10,746	76,231		160	(727)	155,481	340,629	1,027
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2018	344,099	80,932	17,806	10,746	76,474		160	(727)	157,678	343,069	1,030
Profit for the year	20,712								20,517	20,517	195
Other comprehensive income for the year	557						455	102		557
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,269						455	102	20,517	21,074	195
Contribution from non-controlling interests	1,500										1,500
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	(8)		3							3	(11)
Distribution to non-controlling interests	(181)										(181)
Share of an associate's other changes in reserves	(305)		(305)							(305)
Dividends	(8,891)					¥ 0			(8,891)	(8,891)
Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve					1,812				(1,812)
Appropriations to general risk reserve of Finance Company						23			(23)
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2019	¥ 355,040	¥ 80,932	¥ 17,504	¥ 10,746	¥ 78,043	¥ 23	¥ 615	¥ (625)	¥ 165,272	¥ 352,510	¥ 2,530

Consolidated Statements of Cash

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of cash flows [abstract]
Net cash from operating activities	[1]	¥ 112,600	¥ 99,298	¥ 96,502
Cash flows used in investing activities
Capital expenditure		(82,853)	(83,835)	(87,334)
Payments for lease prepayments / right-of-use assets		(310)	(20)	(89)
Purchase of investments		(478)	(328)	(443)
Proceeds from disposal of property, plant and equipment		2,514	1,866	2,066
Proceeds from disposal of lease prepayments / right-of-use assets		115	45	72
Proceeds from disposal of investments		296	96
Net cash inflow / (outflow) from disposal of subsidiaries		0	(1)	184
Purchase of short-term bank deposits		(5,119)	(7,726)	(2,815)
Maturity of short-term bank deposits		8,621	3,949	3,096
Net cash used in investing activities		(77,214)	(85,954)	(85,263)
Cash flows used in financing activities
Repayments of principal of finance lease obligations / lease liabilities		(10,699)	(73)	(84)
Proceeds from bank debt and other loans		103,315	97,829	123,250
Repayments of bank debt and other loans		(120,107)	(106,923)	(69,953)
Repayment of deferred consideration in respect of the Mobile Network Acquisition				(61,710)
Payment of the acquisition price of the Eighth Acquisition (Note 1)			(87)
Payment of dividends		(8,891)	(7,568)	(7,530)
Cash distributions to non-controlling interests		(181)	(177)	(89)
Payment for the acquisition of non-controlling interests		(8)	(119)	(31)
Contribution from non-controlling interests		1,590	855
Net deposits with Finance Company	[2]	4,098
Increase in statutory reserve deposits placed by Finance Company	[2]	(405)
Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests			(20)
Net cash used in financing activities		(31,288)	(16,283)	(16,147)
Net (decrease) / increase in cash and cash equivalents		4,098	(2,939)	(4,908)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year		16,666	19,410	24,617
Effect of changes in foreign exchange rate		27	195	(299)
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year		¥ 20,791	¥ 16,666	¥ 19,410
[1]	Reconciliation of earnings before income tax to net cash from operating activities
[2]	“Finance Company” refers to China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the Company established on January 8, 2019, providing capital and financial management services to the member units of China Telecommunications Corporation.

Consolidated Statements of Ca_2

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Parenthetical) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement [LineItems]
Earnings before income tax		¥ 27,034	¥ 28,148	¥ 24,953
Adjustments for:
Depreciation and amortization		88,145	75,493	74,951
Impairment losses for financial assets and other items, net of reversal		1,695	2,050	2,036
Impairment losses for long-lived assets				10
Write down of inventories, net of reversal		61	66	178
Investment income		(30)	(38)	(147)
Income from investments in associates		(1,573)	(2,104)	(877)
Interest income		(492)	(306)	(429)
Interest expense		4,090	3,093	3,586
Net foreign exchange (gain) / loss		41	(79)	134
Net loss on retirement and disposal of long-lived assets		2,710	1,757	1,841
Increase in accounts receivable		(2,601)	(1,848)	(2,770)
Decrease in contract assets		4	170
Decrease / (increase) in inventories		1,891	(622)	905
(Increase) / decrease in prepayments and other current assets		1,134	(1,349)	(2,618)
(Increase) / decrease in other assets		414	271	(231)
Decrease in accounts payable		(2,657)	(3,181)	(4,213)
Increase in accrued expenses and other payables		614	9,842	7,232
Decrease in contract liabilities		(1,412)	(6,414)
Decrease in deferred revenues		(90)	(138)	(202)
Cash generated from operations		118,978	104,811	104,339
Interest received		474	306	433
Interest paid		(4,200)	(3,094)	(3,707)
Investment income received		133	34	63
Income tax paid		(2,785)	(2,759)	(4,626)
Net cash from operating activities	[1]	¥ 112,600	¥ 99,298	¥ 96,502
[1]	Reconciliation of earnings before income tax to net cash from operating activities

Principal Activities, Organizat

Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation	1. PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES, ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION Principal activities China Telecom Corporation Limited (the “Company”) and its subsidiaries (hereinafter, collectively referred to as the “Group”) offers a comprehensive range of wireline and mobile telecommunications services including voice, Internet, telecommunications network resource and equipment services, information and application services and other related services. The Group provides wireline telecommunications services and related services in Beijing Municipality, Shanghai Municipality, Guangdong Province, Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province, Anhui Province, Fujian Province, Jiangxi Province, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Chongqing Municipality, Sichuan Province, Hubei Province, Hunan Province, Hainan Province, Guizhou Province, Yunnan Province, Shaanxi Province, Gansu Province, Qinghai Province, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China (the “PRC”). The Group also provides mobile telecommunications and related services in the mainland China and Macau Special Administrative Region (“Macau”) of the PRC. The Group also provides international telecommunications services, including network equipment services, international Internet access and transit, Internet data center and mobile virtual network services in certain countries and regions of the Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa, South America and North America. The operations of the Group in the mainland China are subject to the supervision by the PRC government and relevant regulations. Organization As part of the reorganization (the “Restructuring”) of China Telecommunications Corporation, the Company was incorporated in the PRC on September 10, 2002. In connection with the Restructuring, China Telecommunications Corporation transferred to the Company the wireline telecommunications business and related operations in Shanghai Municipality, Guangdong Province, Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province together with the related assets and liabilities in consideration for 68,317 ordinary domestic shares of the Company. The shares issued to China Telecommunications Corporation have a par value of RMB1.00 each and represented the entire registered and issued share capital of the Company at that date. On December 31, 2003, the Company acquired the entire equity interests in Anhui Telecom Company Limited, Fujian Telecom Company Limited, Jiangxi Telecom Company Limited, Guangxi Telecom Company Limited, Chongqing Telecom Company Limited and Sichuan Telecom Company Limited (collectively the “First Acquired Group”) and certain network management and research and development facilities from China Telecommunications Corporation for a total purchase price of RMB46,000 (hereinafter, referred to as the “First Acquisition”). On June 30, 2004, the Company acquired the entire equity interests in Hubei Telecom Company Limited, Hunan Telecom Company Limited, Hainan Telecom Company Limited, Guizhou Telecom Company Limited, Yunnan Telecom Company Limited, Shaanxi Telecom Company Limited, Gansu Telecom Company Limited, Qinghai Telecom Company Limited, Ningxia Telecom Company Limited and Xinjiang Telecom Company Limited (collectively the “Second Acquired Group”) from China Telecommunications Corporation for a total purchase price of RMB27,800 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Second Acquisition”). On June 30, 2007, the Company acquired the entire equity interests in China Telecom System Integration Co., Ltd. (“CTSI”), China Telecom Global Limited (“CT Global”) and China Telecom (Americas) Corporation (“CT Americas”) (collectively the “Third Acquired Group”) from China Telecommunications Corporation for a total purchase price of RMB1,408 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Third Acquisition”). On June 30, 2008, the Company acquired the entire equity interest in China Telecom Group Beijing Corporation (“Beijing Telecom” or the “Fourth Acquired Company”) from China Telecommunications Corporation for a total purchase price of RMB5,557 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Fourth Acquisition”). On August 1, 2011 and December 1, 2011, the subsidiaries of the Company, E-surfing (“E-surfing E-surfing (“E-surfing e-commerce E-surfing On April 30, 2012, the Company acquired the digital trunking business (the “Sixth Acquired Business”) from Besttone Holding Co., Ltd. (“Besttone Holding”), a subsidiary of China Telecommunications Corporation, at a purchase price of RMB48 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Sixth Acquisition”). On December 31, 2013, CT Global, a subsidiary of the Company, acquired 100% equity interest in China Telecom (Europe) Limited (“CT Europe” or the “Seventh Acquired Company”), a wholly owned subsidiary of China Telecommunications Corporation, from China Telecommunications Corporation for a total purchase price of RMB278 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Seventh Acquisition”). On October 31, 2017, the Company disposed of the 100% equity interest in Chengdu E-store (“E-store”), E-store amou n ted to Gain on disposal of a subsidiary: 2017 RMB Consideration for the disposal 251 Net assets disposed of (143 ) Gain on disposal 108 The gain on disposal of E-store Net cash inflow from disposal of a subsidiary: 2017 RMB Consideration received in cash and cash equivalents 249 Less: Cash and cash equivalents disposed of (65 ) Net cash inflow from disposal of a subsidiary 184 In December 2017, the Company acquired the satellite communications business (the “Satcom Business”) from China Telecom Satellite Communication Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of China Telecommunications Corporation, at a purchase price of RMB70. In the same month, E-surfing (“ Hereinafter, the First Acquired Group, the Second Acquired Group, the Third Acquired Group, the Fourth Acquired Company, the Fifth Acquired Group, the Sixth Acquired Business, the Seventh Acquired Company and the Eighth Acquired Group are collectively referred to as the “Acquired Groups”. Basis of presentation Since the Group and the Acquired Groups are under common control of China Telecommunications Corporation, the Group’s acquisitions of the Acquired Groups have been accounted for as a combination of entities under common control in a manner similar to a pooling-of-interests. Merger with subsidiaries Pursuant to the resolution passed by the Company’s shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting held on February 25, 2008, the Company entered into merger agreements with each of the following subsidiaries: Shanghai Telecom Company Limited, Guangdong Telecom Company Limited, Jiangsu Telecom Company Limited, Zhejiang Telecom Company Limited, Anhui Telecom Company Limited, Fujian Telecom Company Limited, Jiangxi Telecom Company Limited, Guangxi Telecom Company Limited, Chongqing Telecom Company Limited, Sichuan Telecom Company Limited, Hubei Telecom Company Limited, Hunan Telecom Company Limited, Hainan Telecom Company Limited, Guizhou Telecom Company Limited, Yunnan Telecom Company Limited, Shaanxi Telecom Company Limited, Gansu Telecom Company Limited, Qinghai Telecom Company Limited, Ningxia Telecom Company Limited and Xinjiang Telecom Company Limited. In addition, the Company entered into merger agreements with Beijing Telecom on July 1, 2008. Pursuant to these merger agreements, the Company merged with these subsidiaries and the assets, liabilities and business operations of these subsidiaries were transferred to the Company’s branches in the respective regions.

Application of New and Amendmen

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation	2. APPLICATION OF NEW AND AMENDMENTS TO INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING STANDARDS (“IFRSs”) AND INTERPRETATION In the current year, the Group has applied, for the first time, the following new and amendments to IFRSs and interpretation issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) that are mandatorily effective for the current year: • IFRS 16, “Leases” • IFRIC 23, “Uncertainty over Income Tax Treatments” • Amendments to IFRS 9, “Prepayment Features with Negative Compensation” • Amendments to IAS 19, “Plan Amendment, Curtailment or Settlement” • Amendments to IAS 28, “Long-term Interests in Associates and Joint Ventures” • Amendments to IFRSs, “Annual Improvements to IFRS Standards 2015-2017 Cycle” Except for IFRS 16, “ Leases The Group has not yet applied any new and revised standard that is not yet effective for the current year (Note 43). IFRS 16, “Leases” The Group has applied IFRS 16 for the first time in the current year. IFRS 16 superseded IAS 17, “Leases” Definition of a lease The Group applies the definition of a lease in accordance with the requirements set out in IFRS 16 in assessing whether a contract contains a lease. Upon application of new definition of a lease, certain operating lease under IAS 17 does not fall into the definition of a lease under IFRS 16 as portion of the asset under such operating lease arrangement is not an identified asset. As a lessee The Group has applied IFRS 16 retrospectively with the cumulative effect recognized at the date of initial application, January 1, 2019. As of January 1, 2019, the Group recognized additional lease liabilities and measured right-of-use assets at the carrying amounts as if IFRS 16 had been applied since commencement dates, but discounted using the incremental borrowing rates of the relevant lessees at the date of initial application by applying IFRS 16 transition provisions. Any cumulative effect at the date of initial application is recognized in the opening retained profits and comparative information has not been restated. When applying the modified retrospective approach under IFRS 16 at transition, the Group applied the following practical expedients to all lease arrangements, on lease-by-lease i. elected not to recognize right-of-use ii. applied a single discount rate to a portfolio of leases with a similar remaining terms for similar class of underlying assets in similar economic environment. Specifically, discount rate for certain leases of telecommunications towers, buildings, equipment and other assets in mainland China was determined on a portfolio basis; and iii. used hindsight based on facts and circumstances as of date of initial application in determining the lease term for the Group’s leases with extension and termination options. When recognizing the lease liabilities for operating leases, the Group has applied incremental borrowing rates of the relevant lessees at the date of initial application. The weighted average lessee’s incremental borrowing rate applied is 3.6%. At January 1, 2019 RMB Operating lease commitments disclosed as of December 31, 2018 65,805 Less: Recognition exemption—short-term leases (684 ) Recognition exemption— low-value (85 ) Variable lease payments not depending on an index or a rate (12,265 ) Reassessment on definition of a lease and change in allocation basis between lease and non-lease (2,852 ) 49,919 Less: Total future interest expenses (4,271 ) Lease liabilities relating to operating leases recognized upon application of IFRS 16 45,648 Add: Finance lease obligations recognized as of 216 Lease liabilities as of January 1, 2019 45,864 Analyzed as Current 10,260 Non-current 35,604 The carrying amount of right-of-use Note Right-of-use assets RMB Right-of-use 43,956 Reclassified from lease prepayments (a ) 21,568 65,524 Note: (a) Upon application of IFRS 16, lease prepayments amounting to RMB21,568 were reclassified to right-of-use As a lessor In accordance with the transitional provisions in IFRS 16, the Group is not required to make any adjustment on transition for leases in which the Group is a lessor but account for these leases in accordance with IFRS 16 from the date of initial application and comparative information has not been restated. Effective on January 1, 2019, the Group has applied IFRS 15, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers” non-lease Interests in associates The net effects arising from the initial application of IFRS 16 resulted in a decrease in the carrying amounts of interests in associates of RMB263 with corresponding adjustments to retained profits. The following adjustments were made to the amounts recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position at January 1, 2019. Line items that were not affected by the changes have not been included. Carrying amounts reported at Carrying amounts Note December 31, 2018 Adjustments January 1, 2019 RMB RMB RMB Non-current Right-of-use — 65,524 65,524 Lease prepayments (a ) 21,568 (21,568 ) — Interests in associates 38,051 (263 ) 37,788 Deferred tax assets 6,544 676 7,220 Other assets 4,840 (746 ) 4,094 Current assets Prepayments and other current assets 23,619 (518 ) 23,101 Current liabilities Accounts payable 107,887 (100 ) 107,787 Current portion of lease liabilities — 10,260 10,260 Current portion of finance lease obligations 101 (101 ) — Non-current Lease liabilities — 35,604 35,604 Finance lease obligations 115 (115 ) — Equity Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company 343,069 (2,440 ) 340,629 Non-controlling 1,030 (3 ) 1,027

Significant Accounting Policies

Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Significant Accounting Policies	3. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (a) Basis of preparation The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as issued by IASB. The consolidated financial statements of the Group have been prepared on a going concern basis. These consolidated financial statements were approved and authorized by the Board of Directors on March 24, 2020. The consolidated financial statements are prepared on the historical cost basis as modified by the revaluation of certain financial instruments measured at fair value (Note 3(j)). The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with IFRSs requires management to make judgments, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of policies and the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and various other factors that management believes are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis of making the judgments about carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from those estimates. The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognized in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods. Judgments made by management in the application of IFRSs that have significant effect on the consolidated financial statements and major sources of estimation uncertainty are discussed in Note 42. (b) Basis of consolidation The consolidated financial statements comprise the Company and its subsidiaries and the Group’s interests in associates. A subsidiary is an entity controlled by the Company. When fulfilling the following conditions, the Company has control over an entity: (a) has power over the investee, (b) has exposure, or rights, to variable returns from its involvement with the investee, and (c) has the ability to use its power over the investee to affect the amount of the investor’s returns. When assessing whether the Company has power over that entity, only substantive rights (held by the Company and other parties) are considered. The financial results of subsidiaries are included in the consolidated financial statements from the date that control commences until the date that control ceases, and the profit attributable to non-controlling non-controlling Non-controlling non-controlling Non-controlling non-controlling An associate is an entity, not being a subsidiary, in which the Group exercises significant influence, but not control, over its management. Significant influence is the power to participate in the financial and operating policy decisions of the investee but is not control or joint control over those policies. An investment in an associate is accounted for in the consolidated financial statements under the equity method and is initially recorded at cost, adjusted for any excess of the Group’s share of the acquisition-date fair values of the investee’s net identifiable assets over the cost of the investment (if any) after reassessment. Thereafter, the investment is adjusted for the Group’s equity share of the post-acquisition changes in the associate’s net assets and any impairment loss relating to the investment. When the Group ceases to have significant influence over an associate, it is accounted for as a disposal of the entire interest in that investee, with a resulting gain or loss being recognized in profit or loss. Any interest retained in that former investee at the date when significant influence is lost is recognized at fair value and this amount is regarded as the fair value on initial recognition of a financial asset. All significant intercompany balances and transactions and unrealized gains arising from intercompany transactions are eliminated on consolidation. Unrealized gains arising from transactions with associates are eliminated to the extent of the Group’s interest in the entity. Unrealized losses are eliminated in the same way as unrealized gains, but only to the extent that there is no evidence of impairment. (c) Foreign currencies The accompanying consolidated financial statements are presented in Renminbi (“RMB”). The functional currency of the Company and its subsidiaries in mainland China is RMB. The functional currency of the Group’s foreign operations is the currency of the primary economic environment in which the foreign operations operate. Transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency during the year are translated into the functional currency at the applicable rates of exchange prevailing on the transaction dates. Foreign currency monetary assets and liabilities are translated into the functional currency using the applicable exchange rates at the end of the reporting period. The resulting exchange differences, other than those capitalized as construction in progress (Note 3(e)), are recognized as income or expense in profit or loss. For the periods presented, no exchange differences were capitalized. When preparing the Group’s consolidated financial statements, the results of operations of the Group’s foreign operations are translated into RMB at average rate prevailing during the year. Assets and liabilities of the Group’s foreign operations are translated into RMB at the foreign exchange rates ruling at the end of the reporting period. The resulting exchange differences are recognized in other comprehensive income and accumulated separately in equity in the exchange reserve. (d) Property, plant and equipment Property, plant and equipment are initially recorded at cost, less subsequent accumulated depreciation and impairment losses (Note 3(h)). The cost of an asset comprises its purchase price, any directly attributable costs of bringing the asset to working condition and location for its intended use and the cost of borrowed funds used during the periods of construction. Expenditure incurred after the asset has been put into operation, including cost of replacing part of such an item, is capitalized only when it increases the future economic benefits embodied in the item of property, plant and equipment and the cost can be measured reliably. All other expenditure is expensed as it is incurred. Gains or losses arising from retirement or disposal of property, plant and equipment are determined as the difference between the net disposal proceeds and the carrying amount of the respective asset and are recognized as income or expense in the profit or loss on the date of disposal. Depreciation is provided to write off the cost of each asset over its estimated useful life on a straight-line basis, after taking into account its estimated residual value, as follows: Depreciable lives Buildings and improvements 8 to 30 years Telecommunications network plant and equipment 5 to 10 years Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment 5 to 10 years Where parts of an item of property, plant and equipment have different useful lives, the cost of the item is allocated on a reasonable basis between the parts and each part is depreciated separately. Both the useful life of an asset and its residual value are reviewed annually. (e) Construction in progress Construction in progress represents buildings, telecommunications network plant and equipment and other equipment and intangible assets under construction and pending installation, and is stated at cost less impairment losses (Note 3(h)). The cost of an item comprises direct costs of construction, capitalization of interest charge, and foreign exchange differences on related borrowed funds to the extent that they are regarded as an adjustment to interest charges during the periods of construction. Capitalization of these costs ceases and the construction in progress is transferred to property, plant and equipment and intangible assets when the asset is substantially ready for its intended use. No depreciation is provided in respect of construction in progress. (f) Goodwill Goodwill represents the excess of the cost over the Group’s interest in the fair value of the net assets acquired in the CDMA business (as defined in Note 12) acquisition. Goodwill is stated at cost less any accumulated impairment losses. Goodwill is allocated to cash-generating units and is tested annually for impairment (Note 3(h)). On disposal of a cash generating unit during the year, any attributable amount of the goodwill is included in the calculation of the profit or loss on disposal. (g) Intangible assets The Group’s intangible assets are primarily software. Software that is not an integral part of any tangible assets, is recorded at cost less subsequent accumulated amortization and impairment losses (Note 3(h)). Amortization of software is mainly calculated on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives, which range from 3 to 5 years. (h) Impairment of goodwill and long-lived assets The carrying amounts of the Group’s long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, right-of-use Before the Group recognizes an impairment loss for assets capitalized as contract costs under IFRS 15, the Group assesses and recognizes any impairment loss on other assets related to the relevant contracts in accordance with applicable standards. Then, impairment loss, if any, for assets capitalized as contract costs is recognized to the extent the carrying amounts exceeds the remaining amount of consideration that the Group expects to receive in exchange for related goods or services less the costs which relate directly to providing those goods or services that have not been recognized as expenses. The assets capitalized as contract costs are then included in the carrying amount of the cash-generating unit to which they belong for the purpose of evaluating impairment of that cash-generating unit. The recoverable amount of an asset or cash-generating unit is the greater of its fair value less costs of disposal and value in use. The recoverable amount of a tangible and an intangible asset is estimated individually. When an asset does not generate cash flows largely independent of those from other assets, the recoverable amount is determined for the smallest group of assets that generates cash inflows independently (i.e. a cash-generating unit). In determining the value in use, expected future cash flows generated by the assets are discounted to their present value using a pre-tax An impairment loss is recognized if the carrying amount of an asset or its cash-generating unit exceeds its estimated recoverable amount. Impairment loss is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. Impairment loss recognized in respect of cash-generating units is allocated first to reduce the carrying amount of any goodwill allocated to the units and then to reduce the carrying amounts of the other assets in the unit (group of units) on a pro rata basis. The Group assesses at the end of each reporting period whether there is any indication that an impairment loss recognized for an asset in prior years may no longer exist. An impairment loss is reversed if there has been a favorable change in the estimates used to determine the recoverable amount. A subsequent increase in the recoverable amount of an asset, when the circumstances and events that led to the write-down cease to exist, is recognized as an income in profit or loss. The reversal is reduced by the amount that would have been recognized as depreciation and amortization had the write-down not occurred. An impairment loss in respect of goodwill is not reversed. For the years presented, no reversal of impairment loss was recognized in profit or loss. (i) Inventories Inventories consist of materials and supplies used in maintaining the telecommunications network and goods for resale. Inventories are valued at cost using the specific identification method or the weighted average cost method, less a provision for obsolescence. Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realizable value. Net realizable value is the estimated selling price in the ordinary course of business less the estimated costs of completion, the estimated costs to make the sale and the related tax expenses. (j) Financial instruments Effective January 1, 2018, the Group applied IFRS 9, “Financial instruments” The Group applied IFRS 9 in accordance with the transition provisions set out in IFRS 9, i.e. applied the classification and measurement requirements (including impairment under ECL model) retrospectively to instruments that have not been derecognized as of January 1, 2018 (date of initial application) and not applied the requirements to instruments that have already been derecognized as of January 1, 2018. The difference between carrying amounts as of December 31, 2017 and the carrying amounts as of January 1, 2018 are recognized in and reduced the opening reserves as of January 1, 2018 by RMB716, without restating comparative information. Accordingly, certain comparative information may not be comparable as comparative information was prepared under IAS 39, “ Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement Financial assets and financial liabilities are recognized when the Group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the instrument. All regular way purchases or sales of financial assets are recognized and derecognized on a settlement date basis. Regular way purchases or sales are purchases or sales of financial assets that require delivery of assets within the time frame established by regulation or convention in the market place. Financial assets and financial liabilities are initially measured at fair value except for accounts receivable arising from contracts with customers which are initially measured in accordance with IFRS 15. Transaction costs that are directly attributable to the acquisition or issue of financial assets and financial liabilities, other than financial assets or financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss (“FVTPL”) are added to or deducted from the fair value of the financial assets or financial liabilities, as appropriate, on initial recognition. Transaction costs directly attributable to the acquisition of financial assets or financial liabilities at FVTPL are recognized immediately in profit or loss. The effective interest method is a method of calculating the amortized cost of a financial asset or financial liability and of allocating interest income and interest expense over the relevant period. The effective interest rate is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts and payments (including all fees and points paid or received that form an integral part of the effective interest rate, transaction costs and other premiums or discounts) through the expected life of the financial asset or financial liability, or, where appropriate, a shorter period, to the net carrying amount on initial recognition. Financial assets Classification and subsequent measurement of financial assets (upon application of IFRS 9) (i) Financial assets measured subsequently at amortized cost Financial assets that meet the following conditions are subsequently measured at amortized cost: • the financial asset is held within a business model whose objective is to collect contractual cash flows; and • the contractual terms give rise on specified dates to cash flows that are solely payments of principal and interest on the principal amount outstanding. Interest income is recognized using the effective interest method for financial assets measured subsequently at amortized cost. Interest income is calculated by applying the effective interest rate to the gross carrying amount of a financial asset, except for financial assets that have subsequently become credit-impaired (see below). For financial assets that have subsequently become credit-impaired, interest income is recognized by applying the effective interest rate to the amortized cost of the financial asset from the next reporting period. If the credit risk on the credit-impaired financial instrument improves so that the financial asset is no longer credit-impaired, interest income is recognized by applying the effective interest rate to the gross carrying amount of the financial asset from the beginning of the reporting period following the determination that the asset is no longer credit-impaired. (ii) Equity instruments designated as of fair value through other comprehensive income (“FVTOCI”) At the date of initial application of IFRS 9 / initial recognition of a financial asset, the Group may irrevocably elect to present subsequent changes in fair value of an equity investment in OCI, and accumulate in other reserves, if that equity investment is neither held for trading nor contingent consideration recognized by an acquirer in a business combination to which IFRS 3, “Business Combinations” Dividend from these investments in equity instruments are recognized in profit or loss when the Group’s right to receive the dividends is established, unless the dividends clearly represent a recovery of part of the cost of the investment. Dividends are included in the “investment income” line item in profit or loss. (iii) Financial assets at FVTPL Financial assets that do not meet the criteria for being measured at amortized cost or FVTOCI or designated as FVTOCI are measured at FVTPL. Financial assets at FVTPL are measured at fair value at the end of each reporting period, with any fair value gains or losses recognized in profit or loss. The net gain or loss recognized in profit or loss includes any dividend or interest earned on the financial asset and is included in the “investment income” line item. Impairment of financial assets and other items subject to impairment assessment (upon application of IFRS 9) The Group performs impairment assessment under ECL model on financial assets (including accounts receivable and financial as s Lifetime ECL represents the ECL that will result from all possible default events over the expected life of the relevant instrument. In contrast, 12-month ECL (“12m ECL”) represents the portion of lifetime ECL that is expected to result from default events that are possible within 12 months after the reporting date. Assessments are done based on the Group’s historical credit loss experience, adjusted for factors that are specific to the debtors, general economic conditions and an assessment of both the current conditions at the reporting date as well as the forecast of future conditions. The Group always recognizes lifetime ECL for accounts receivable and contract assets. The ECL on these assets are assessed individually for debtors with significant balances or credit-impaired debtors, and collectively using a provision matrix with appropriate groupings based on shared credit risk characteristics, nature of services provided as well as type of customers, such as receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers and from enterprise customers. For all other instruments, the Group measures the loss allowance equal to 12m ECL, unless when there has been a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition, the Group recognizes lifetime ECL. The assessment of whether lifetime ECL should be recognized is based on significant increases in the likelihood or risk of a default occurring since initial recognition. (i) Significant increase in credit risk In assessing whether the credit risk has increased significantly since initial recognition, the Group compares the risk of a default occurring on the financial instrument as of the reporting date with the risk of a default occurring on the financial instrument as of the date of initial recognition. In making this assessment, the Group considers both quantitative and qualitative information that is reasonable and supportable, including historical experience and forward-looking information that is available without undue cost or effort. In particular, the following information is taken into account when assessing whether credit risk has increased significantly: • failure to make payments of principal or interest on their contractually due dates; • an actual or expected significant deterioration in a financial instrument’s external or internal credit rating (if available); • an actual or expected significant deterioration in the operating results of the debtor; and • existing or forecast changes in the technological, market, economic or legal environment that have a significant adverse effect on the debtor’s ability to meet its obligation to the Group. (ii) Definition of default For internal credit risk management, the Group considers an event of default occurs when information developed internally or obtained from external sources indicates that the debtor is unlikely to pay its creditors, including the Group, in full (without taking into account any collaterals held by the Group). (iii) Credit-impaired financial assets A financial asset is credit-impaired when one or more events that have a detrimental impact on the estimated future cash flows of that financial asset have occurred. Evidence that a financial asset is credit-impaired includes observable data about the following events: • significant financial difficulty of the issuer or the borrower; • a breach of contract, such as a default or past due event; • the lender(s) of the borrower, for economic or contractual reasons relating to the borrower’s financial difficulty, having granted to the borrower a concession(s) that the lender(s) would not otherwise consider; • it is becoming probable that the borrower will enter bankruptcy or other financial reorganization; or • the disappearance of an active market for that financial asset because of financial difficulties. (iv) Write-off The Group writes off a financial asset when there is information indicating that the counterparty is in severe financial difficulty and there is no realistic prospect of recovery, for example, when the counterparty has been placed under liquidation or has entered into bankruptcy proceedings. A write-off (v) Measurement and recognition of ECL The measurement of ECL is a function of the probability of default, loss given default (i.e. the magnitude of the loss if there is a default) and the exposure at default. The assessment of the probability of default and loss given default is based on the historical data adjusted by forward-looking information. Generally, the ECL is the difference between all contractual cash flows that are due to the Group in accordance with the contract and all the cash flows that the Group expects to receive, discounted at the effective interest rate determined at initial recognition. Where ECL is measured on a collective basis or cater for cases where evidence at the individual instrument level may not be available, the financial instruments are grouped on the following basis: • Nature of financial instruments (i.e. the Group’s accounts receivable and financial assets included in prepayments and other current assets are each assessed as a separate group); • Past-due • Nature, size and industry of debtors; and • External credit ratings where available. The grouping is regularly reviewed by management to ensure the constituents of each group continue to share similar credit risk characteristics. The Group recognizes an impairment gain or loss in profit or loss for all financial instruments measured at amortized cost by adjusting their carrying amount, with the exception of accounts receivable and other receivables where the corresponding adjustment is recognized through a loss allowance account. Classification and subsequent measurement of financial assets (prior to January 1, 2018) The Group’s financial assets are classified into the following specified categories: AFS financial assets and loans and receivables. The classification depends on the nature and purpose of the financial assets and is determined at the time of initial recognition. All regular way purchases or sales of the financial assets are recognized and derecognized on a settlement date basis. Regular way purchases or sales are purchases or sales of financial assets that require delivery of assets within the time frame established by regulation or convention in the marketplace. (i) AFS financial assets Investments in available-for-sale listed equity securities are carried at fair value with any change in fair value being recognized in other comprehensive income and accumulated separately in equity. For investments in available-for-sale listed equity securities, a significant or prolonged decline in the fair value of that investment below its cost is considered to be objective evidence of impairment. When these investments are derecognized or impaired, the cumulative gain or loss previously recognized in other comprehensive income is recognized in profit or loss. Investments in unlisted equity securities that do not have a quoted market price in an active market and whose fair value cannot be reliably measured are stated at cost less impairment losses (see below). (ii) Loans and receivables Accounts receivable and other receivables are initially recognized at fair value and thereafter stated at amortized cost using the effective interest method, less allowance for doubtful debts (see below) unless the effect of discounting would be immaterial, in which case they are stated at cost less allowance for doubtful debts. Impairment of financial assets (prior to January 1, 2018) Accounts and other receivables and investments in equity securities carried at cost are reviewed at the end of each reporting period to determine whether there is objective evidence of impairment. Objective evidence of impairment includes observable data that comes to the attention of the Group about one or more of the following loss events: • significant financial difficulty of the debtor or issuer; • a breach of contract, such as a default or delinquency in interest or principal payments; • it becoming probable that the debtor will enter bankruptcy or other financial reorganization; and • significant changes in the technological, market, economic or legal environment that have an adverse effect on the debtor/issuer. The impairment loss for accounts and other receivables is measured as the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the estimated future cash flows, discounted at the financial asset’s original effective interest rate where the effect of discounting is material, and is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. The impairment loss for investments in equity securities carried at cost is measured as the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the estimated future cash flows, discounted at the current market rate of return for a similar financial asset where the effect of discounting is material, and is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. Impairment losses for accounts and other receivables are reversed through profit or loss if in a subsequent period the amount of the impairment losses decreases. Impairment losses for equity securities carried at cost are not reversed. Derecognition of financial assets The Group derecognizes a financial asset only when the contractual rights to the cash flows from the asset expire, or when it transfers the financial asset and substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership of the asset to another entity. On derecognition of a financial asset measured at amortized cost, the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the sum of the consideration received and receivable is recognized in profit or loss. On derecognition of an investment in equity instrument which the Group has elected on initial recognition / initial application to measure at FVTOCI upon application of IFRS 9, the cumulative gain or loss previously accumulated in other reserves is not reclassified to profit or loss, but is transferred to retained earnings. On derecognition of an AFS financial asset, the cumulative gain or loss previously accumulated in other reserves is reclassified to profit or loss. Financial liabilities and equity Classification as debt or equity Debt and equity instruments are classified as either financial liabilities or as equity in accordance with the substance of the contractual arrangements and the definitions of a financial liability and an equity instrument. Equity instruments An equity instrument is any contract that evidences a residual interest in the assets of an entity after deducting all of its liabilities. Equity instruments issued by the Group are recognized at the proceeds received, net of direct issue costs. Financial liabilities All financial liabilities are subsequently measured at amortized cost using the effective interest method. Financial liabilities including short-term and long-term debt, accounts payable, and financial liabilities included in accrued expenses and other payables are subsequently measured at amortized cost, using the effective interest method. Offsetting a financial asset and a financial liability A financial asset and a financial liability are offset and the net amount presented in the statement of financial position when, and only when, the Group currently has a legally enforceable right to set off the recognized amounts; and intends either to settle on a net basis, or to realize the asset and settle the liability simultaneously. (k) Cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents comprise cash at bank and in hand and time deposits with original maturities of three months or less when purchased. Cash equivalents are stated at cost, which approximates fair value. None of the Group’s cash and cash equivalents is restricted as to withdrawal. (l) Revenue from contract with customers (upon application of IFRS 15) Effective January 1, 2018, the Group applied IFRS 15 and the related Amendments. IFRS 15 superseded IAS 18, “Revenue” “Construction Contracts” “Revenue” Under IFRS 15, the Group recognizes revenue when (or as) a performance obligation is satisfied. i.e. when “control” of the goods or services underlying the particular performance obligation is transferred to the customer. A performance obligation represents a good or service (or a bundle of goods or services) that is distinct or a series of distinct goods or services that are substantially the same. Control is transferred over time and revenue is recognized over time by reference to the progress towards complete satisfaction of the relevant performance obligation if one of the following criteria is met: • the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefits provided by the Group’s performance as the Group performs; • the Group’s performance creates and enhances an asset that the customer controls as the Groups performs; or • the Group’s performance does not create an asset with an alternative use to the Group and the Group has an enforceable right to payment for performance completed to date. As such, revenues from contracts with customers of telecommunications services, including voice, Internet, information and application and telecommunications network resource and equipment services, resale of mobile services (MVNO) and repair and maintenance of equipment are generally recognized over time during which the services are provided to customers. Otherwise, revenue is recognized at a point in time when the customer obtains control of the distinct good or service. As such, revenues from sales of equipment are recognize at a point in time when the equipment is delivered to the customers and when the control over the equipment have been transferred to the customers. A contract asset represents the Group’s right to consideration in exchange for goods or services that the Group has transferred to a customer but the right is conditioned on the Group’s future performance. A contract asset is transferred to accounts receivable when the right becomes unconditional. A contract asset is assessed for impairment in accordance with IFRS 9. In contrast, a receivable represents the Group’s unconditional right to consideration, i.e. only the passage of time is required before payment of that consideration is due. A contract liability represents the Group’s obligation to transfer goods or services to a customer for which the Group has received consideration (or an am

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and Cash Equivalents	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Cash and Cash Equivalents	4. CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cash at bank and in hand 14,937 20,006 Time deposits with original maturity within three months 1,729 785 16,666 20,791

Accounts Receivable, Net

Accounts Receivable, Net	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Accounts Receivable, Net	5. ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE, NET Accounts receivable, net, are analyzed as follows: December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 23,308 24,438 China Telecom Group (i ) 1,327 1,188 China Tower (See definition in Note 14) 10 5 Other telecommunications operators in the PRC 510 550 25,155 26,181 Less: Allowance for credit losses (4,680 ) (4,692 ) 20,475 21,489 Note: (i) China Telecommunications Corporation together with its subsidiaries other than the Group are referred to as “China Telecom Group”. As of January 1, 2018, the gross carrying amounts of accounts receivable from contracts with customers amounted to RMB25,342. Aging analysis of accounts receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers based on the billing dates is as follows: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 8,376 7,545 1 to 3 months 2,117 1,777 4 to 12 months 1,932 1,822 More than 12 months 943 1,002 13,368 12,146 Less: Allowance for credit losses (2,898 ) (2,803 ) 10,470 9,343 Aging analysis of accounts receivable from other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers based on dates of rendering of services is as follows: December 31 , 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 3,318 4,701 1 to 3 months 2,300 2,964 4 to 12 months 3,994 3,768 More than 12 months 2,175 2,602 11,787 14,035 Less: Allowance for credit losses (1,782 ) (1,889 ) 10,005 12,146 As of December 31, 201 8 9 and R MB The following table summarizes the changes in allowance for doubtful debts in 2017: 2017 RMB At beginning of year 3,402 Impairment losses for doubtful debts 1,962 Accounts receivable written off (1,522 ) At end of year 3,842 Details of impairment assessment of accounts receivable for the year ended December 31, 2018 and 2019 are set out in note 35.

Contract Assets

Contract Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Contract Assets	6. CONTRACT ASSETS December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 454 447 China Telecom Group 24 27 478 474 The Group’s contracts for information and application services include payment schedules which require stage payments over the service period once certain specified milestones are reached. The Group classifies these contract assets as current because the Group expects to realize them in its normal operating cycle.

Inventories

Inventories	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Inventories	7. INVENTORIES December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Materials and supplies 1,012 577 Goods for resale 3,820 2,303 4,832 2,880

Prepayments and Other Current A

Prepayments and Other Current Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Prepayments and Other Current Assets	8. PREPAYMENTS AND OTHER CURRENT ASSETS December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Amounts due from China Telecom Group 1,035 1,233 Amounts due from China Tower (See definition in Note 14) 293 192 Amounts due from other telecommunications operators in the PRC 333 352 Prepayments in connection with construction work and equipment purchases 2,752 3,352 Prepaid expenses and deposits 3,628 2,993 Value-added tax recoverable 8,618 8,803 Other receivables (i ) 6,960 5,294 23,619 22,219 Note: (i) Other receivables as of December 31, 2018 include the unpaid remaining consideration of the contribution from non-controlling

Property, Plant and Equipment,

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net	9. PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET Buildings and ments Telecom- network plant and Furniture, other Total RMB RMB RMB RMB Cost/Deemed cost: Balance at January 1, 2018 101,332 842,473 30,585 974,390 Additions 712 512 306 1,530 Transferred from construction in progress 1,454 71,704 1,721 74,879 Retirement and disposal (860 ) (59,822 ) (1,636 ) (62,318 ) Reclassification (97 ) (485 ) 582 — Balance at December 31, 2018 102,541 854,382 31,558 988,481 Additions 554 274 277 1,105 Transferred from construction in progress 2,060 74,157 1,644 77,861 Retirement and disposal (751 ) (62,560 ) (2,419 ) (65,730 ) Reclassification (39 ) (536 ) 575 — Balance at December 31, 2019 104,365 865,717 31,635 1,001,717 Accumulated depreciation and impairment: Balance at January 1, 2018 (54,706 ) (491,066 ) (22,361 ) (568,133 ) Depreciation charge for the year (4,370 ) (63,878 ) (2,135 ) (70,383 ) Written back on retirement and disposal 750 55,519 1,561 57,830 Reclassification 26 439 (465 ) — Balance at December 31, 2018 (58,300 ) (498,986 ) (23,400 ) (580,686 ) Depreciation charge for the year (4,185 ) (64,672 ) (2,101 ) (70,958 ) Written back on retirement and disposal 681 56,943 2,311 59,935 Reclassification 19 358 (377 ) — Balance at December 31, 2019 (61,785 ) (506,357 ) (23,567 ) (591,709 ) Net book value at December 31, 2019 42,580 359,360 8,068 410,008 Net book value at December 31, 2018 44,241 355,396 8,158 407,795

Construction in Progress

Construction in Progress	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Construction in Progress	10. CONSTRUCTION IN PROGRESS RMB Balance at January 1, 2018 73,106 Additions 74,457 Transferred to property, plant and equipment (74,879 ) Transferred to intangible assets (6,040 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 66,644 Additions 76,870 Transferred to property, plant and equipment (77,861 ) Transferred to intangible assets (6,447 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 59,206

Right-of-Use Assets

Right-of-Use Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [abstract]
Right-of-Use Assets	11. RIGHT-OF-USE Leasehold s Buildings Telecommunications Equipment Others Total RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB As of January 1, 2019 Carrying amount 21,568 7,079 27,354 9,311 212 65,524 As of December 31, 2019 Carrying amount 20,952 8,289 23,740 8,361 207 61,549 For the year ended December 31, 2019 Depreciation charge 732 2,968 6,966 1,612 65 12,343 For the year ended December 31, 2019, expenses relating to short-term leases and other leases with lease terms ended within 12 months of the date of initial application of IFRS 16 amounting to RMB939, expenses relating to leases of low value assets (excluding short-term leases of low value assets) amounting to RMB45 and variable lease payments not included in the measurement of lease liabilities amounting to RMB4,640, are recognized in profit or loss. For the year ended December 31, 2019, total cash outflow for leases is RMB18,240, and additions to right-of-use assets are RMB9,172. The Group leases telecommunications towers and related assets, land and buildings, equipment and other assets for its operations. Lease terms are negotiated on an individual basis and contain a wide range of different terms and conditions. In determining the lease term and assessing the length of the non-cancellable As of December 31, 2019, the portfolio of short-term leases is similar to the portfolio of short-term leases to which the short-term lease expense disclosed above in this note.

Goodwill

Goodwill	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Goodwill	12. GOODWILL December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cost: Goodwill arising from acquisition of CDMA business 29,922 29,923 On October 1, 2008, the Group acquired the CDMA mobile communication business and related assets and liabilities, which also included the entire equity interests of China Unicom (Macau) Company Limited (currently known as China Telecom (Macau) Company Limited) and 99.5% equity interests of Unicom Huasheng Telecommunications Technology Company Limited (currently known as Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited) (collectively the “CDMA business”) from China Unicom Limited and China Unicom Corporation Limited (collectively “China Unicom”). The purchase price of the business combination was RMB43,800, which was fully settled as of December 31, 2010. In addition, pursuant to the acquisition agreement, the Group acquired the customer-related assets and assumed the customer-related liabilities of CDMA business for a net settlement amount of RMB3,471 due from China Unicom. This amount was subsequently settled by China Unicom in 2009. The business combination was accounted for using the purchase method. The goodwill recognized in the business combination is attributable to the skills and technical talent of the acquired business’s workforce, and the synergies expected to be achieved from integrating and combining the CDMA mobile communication business into the Group’s telecommunications business. For the purpose of goodwill impairment testing, the goodwill arising from the acquisition of CDMA business was allocated to the appropriate cash-generating unit of the Group, which is the Group’s telecommunications business. The recoverable amount of the Group’s telecommunications business is estimated based on the value in use model, which considers the Group’s financial budgets covering a five-year period and a pre-tax Cash flows beyond the five-year period are extrapolated using a steady growth rate (2018: 1.5%) Key assumptions used for the value in use calculation model are the number of subscribers, average revenue per subscriber and gross margin. Management determined the number of subscribers, average revenue per subscriber and gross margin based on historical trends and financial information and operational data.

Intangible Assets

Intangible Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Intangible Assets	13. INTANGIBLE ASSETS Software RMB Cost: Balance at January 1, 2018 34,550 Additions 269 Transferred from construction in progress 6,040 Disposals (3,545 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 37,314 Additions 624 Transferred from construction in progress 6,447 Disposals (591 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 43,794 Accumulated amortization and impairment: Balance at January 1, 2018 (22,159 ) Amortization charge for the year (4,366 ) Written back on disposals 3,372 Balance at December 31, 2018 (23,153 ) Amortization charge for the year (4,844 ) Written back on disposals 552 Balance at December 31, 2019 (27,445 ) Net book value at December 31, 2019 16,349 Net book value at December 31, 2018 14,161

Interests in Associates

Interests in Associates	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Investments accounted for using equity method [abstract]
Interests in Associates	14. INTERESTS IN ASSOCIATES December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cost of investment in associates 36,933 37,173 Share of post-acquisition changes in net assets 1,118 2,019 38,051 39,192 Fair value of listed investments 46,797 55,601 The Group’s interests in associates are accounted for under the equity method. Details of the Group’s principal associates are as follows: Name of company Attributable Principal activities China Tower Corporation Limited (Note (i)) 20.5 % Construction, maintenance and operation of telecommunications towers as well as ancillary facilities Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (Note (ii)) 24.0 % Provision of information technology consultancy services Notes: (i) China Tower Corporation Limited (“China Tower”) is established and operated in the PRC, and listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on August 8, 2018. Income from investments in associates for the year ended December 31, 2018 includes: (a) a one-off (ii) Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (“Shanghai Info-investment”) is established and operated in the PRC and is not traded on any stock exchange. Summarized financial information of the Group’s principal associates and reconciled to the carrying amounts of interests in associates in the Group’s consolidated financial statements are disclosed below: China Tower December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current assets 31,799 40,995 Non-current 283,565 297,072 Current liabilities 114,759 128,364 Non-current 20,103 27,142 2018 2019 RMB RMB Operating revenues 71,819 76,428 Profit for the year 2,650 5,221 Other comprehensive income for the year — — Total comprehensive income for the year 2,650 5,221 Dividend received from the associate — 81 Reconcile to the Group’s interests in the associate: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Net assets of the associate 180,502 182,561 Non-controlling — (2 ) The Group’s effective interest in the associate 20.5 % 20.5 % The Group’s share of net assets of the associate 37,003 37,425 Adjustment for the remaining balance of the deferred gain from the Tower Assets Disposal (1,013 ) (865 ) Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 35,990 36,560 Shanghai Info - December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current assets 7,181 4,292 Non-current 8,592 5,203 Current liabilities 6,615 2,494 Non-current 1,985 787 2018 2019 RMB RMB Operating revenues 4,337 3,214 Profit for the year 586 1,158 Other comprehensive income for the year (29 ) (7 ) Total comprehensive income for the year 557 1,151 Dividend received from the associate 9 9 Reconcile to the Group’s interests in the associate: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Net assets of the associate 7,173 6,214 Non-controlling (2,180 ) (144 ) The Group’s effective interest in the associate 24.0 % 24.0 % The Group’s share of net assets of the associate 1,198 1,457 Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 1,198 1,457 Aggregate financial information of the Group’s associates that are not individually material is disclosed below: 2018 2019 RMB RMB The Group’s share of profit of these associates 14 85 The Group’s share of total comprehensive income of these associates 14 85 December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Aggregate carrying amount of interests in these associates in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 863 1,175

Equity Instruments at Fair Valu

Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income	15. EQUITY INSTRUMENTS AT FAIR VALUE THROUGH OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME December 31, Notes 2018 2019 RMB RMB Equity securities listed in the mainland China (i ) 638 1,228 Unlisted equity securities (ii ) 214 230 852 1,458 Notes: (i) The above listed equity instruments represent ordinary shares of entities listed in the mainland China. These investments are not held for trading, instead, they are held for long-term strategic purposes. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that recognizing short-term fluctuations in these investments’ fair value in profit or loss would not be consistent with the Group’s strategy of holding these investments for long-term purposes and realizing their performance potential in the long run. (ii) The above unlisted equity securities represent the Group’s equity interests in various private entities established in the PRC. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that the Group will hold these investments for long-term strategic purposes.

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabili

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities	16. DEFERRED TAX ASSETS AND LIABILITIES The components of deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements are as follows: Assets Liabilities Net Balance 201 8 201 9 201 8 201 9 201 8 201 9 RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses 1,925 1,953 — — 1,925 1,953 Property, plant and equipment, and others 4,580 4,862 (13,022 ) (18,831 ) (8,442 ) (13,969 ) Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities — 744 — — — 744 Deferred revenues and installation costs 39 18 (29 ) (13 ) 10 5 Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income — — (87 ) (234 ) (87 ) (234 ) Deferred tax assets/(liabilities) 6,544 7,577 (13,138 ) (19,078 ) (6,594 ) (11,501 ) Balance at January 1, 2017 Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2017 RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for doubtful debts 1,531 95 1,626 Property, plant and equipment, and others (1,006 ) (3,001 ) (4,007 ) Deferred revenues and installation costs 35 (16 ) 19 Available-for-sale (269 ) 100 (169 ) Net deferred tax assets/(liabilities) 291 (2,822 ) (2,531 ) Balance at December 31, 2017 Changes in Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2018 RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses 1,626 203 96 1,925 Property, plant and equipment, and others (4,007 ) (1,066 ) (3,369 ) (8,442 ) Deferred revenues and installation costs 19 — (9 ) 10 Available-for-sale (169 ) 169 — — Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income — (169 ) 82 (87 ) Net deferred tax liabilities (2,531 ) (863 ) (3,200 ) (6,594 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 Change in Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2019 RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for cre dit los ses 1,925 — 28 1,953 Property, plant and equipment, and others (8,442 ) — (5,527 ) (13,969 ) Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities — 676 68 744 Deferred revenues and installation costs 10 — (5 ) 5 Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income (87 ) — (147 ) (234 ) Net deferred tax liabilities (6,594 ) 676 (5,583 ) (11,501 )

Other Assets

Other Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Other Assets	17. OTHER ASSETS December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Contract costs (i ) 1,287 988 Installation fees 124 56 Other long-term prepaid expenses 3,429 3,643 4,840 4,687 Note: (i) Contract costs capitalized as of December 31, 2018 and 2019 mainly relate to the incremental sales commissions paid to third party agents whose selling activities resulted in subscribers entering into telecommunications service agreements with the Group. The amount of capitalized costs recognized in profit or loss during the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2019 was RMB1,744 and RMB1,367, respectively. There was no impairment in relation to the opening balance of capitalized costs or the costs capitalized during the year.

Short-term and Long-term Debt

Short-term and Long-term Debt	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Short-term and Long-term Debt	18. SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM DEBT Short-term debt comprises: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Loans from banks—unsecured 12,881 15,831 Super short-term commercial papers — unsecured 27,992 19,995 Other loans — unsecured 80 80 Loans from China Telecom Group — unsecured 8,584 6,621 Total short-term debt 49,537 42,527 The weighted average interest rate of the Group’s total short-term debt as of December 31, 2018 and 2019 was 3.2% per annum and 2.9% per annum, respectively. As of December 31, 2019, the Group’s loans from banks and other loans bear interest at rates ranging from 3.5 % % % % will be repaid by June 19, 2020; the from China Telecom Group bear interest at rate of 3.5 % Long-term debt comprises: December 31, Interest rates and final maturity 2018 2019 RMB RMB Bank loans — unsecured Renminbi denominated (Note (i)) Interest rates ranging from 1.08% to 1.20% per annum with maturities through 2036 8,455 7,738 US Dollars denominated Interest rates ranging from 1.25% to 2.00% per annum with maturities through 2028 336 288 Euro denominated Interest rate of 2.30% per annum with maturities through 2032 199 173 8,990 8,199 Other loans — unsecured Renminbi denominated 1 1 Medium -term note — un secured (Note(ii)) — 4,995 Loans from China Telecom Group — unsecured Renminbi denominated (Note ( i 37,000 23,300 Total long-term debt 45,991 36,495 Less: Current portion (1,139 ) (4,444 ) Non-current 44,852 32,051 Notes: (i) The Group obtained long-term RMB denominated government loans with below-market interest rates ranging from 1.08% to 1.20% per annum through banks (the “Low-interest Low-interest Low-interest (ii) On January 22, 2019, the Group issued three-year, RMB3,000 denominated medium-term note with annual interest rate of 3.42% per annum, and incurred issuing costs of RMB3. The medium-term note is unsecured and is repayable on January 21, 2022. On March 19, 2019, the Group issued three-year, RMB2,000 denominated medium-term note with annual interest rate of 3.41% per annum and incurred issuing costs of RMB3. The medium-term note is unsecured and is repayable on March 18, 2022. (iii) The Group obtained long-term RMB denominated loans with the interest rate of 3.8% per annum from China Telecommunications Corporation on December 25, 2017, which are repayable within 3 to 5 years. The Group partially repaid these loans amounting to RMB3,000 and RMB13,700, respectively, in 2018 and 2019. The aggregate maturities of the Group’s long-term debt subsequent to December 31, 2019 are as follows: RMB 2020 4,444 2021 1,078 2022 26,032 2023 965 2024 940 Thereafter 3,036 36,495 The Group’s short-term and long-term debt do not contain any financial covenants. As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the Group had unutilized committed credit facilities amounting to RMB150,693 and RMB245,847 respectively.

Accounts Payable

Accounts Payable	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Accounts Payable	19. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 83,418 78,123 China Telecom Group 20,983 19,531 China Tower 2,850 4,312 Other telecommunications operators in the PRC 636 650 107,887 102,616 Amounts due to China Telecom Group and China Tower are payable in accordance with contractual terms which are similar to those terms offered by third parties.

Accrued Expenses and Other Paya

Accrued Expenses and Other Payables	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Accrued Expenses and Other Payables	20. ACCRUED EXPENSES AND OTHER PAYABLES December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Amounts due to China Telecom Group 2,171 6,069 Amounts due to China Tower 1,246 1,261 Amounts due to other telecommunications operators in the PRC 46 32 Accrued expenses 33,811 34,628 Value-added tax payable 484 564 Customer deposits and receipts in advance 5,739 5,962 43,497 48,516

Contract Liabilities

Contract Liabilities	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Contract Liabilities	21. CONTRACT LIABILITIES December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 55,638 54,225 China Telecom Group 145 162 China Tower — 1 55,783 54,388 As of January 1, 2018, contract liabilities amounted to RMB62,175. Majority of contract liabilities as of December 31, 2018 was recogni z

Lease Liabilities

Lease Liabilities	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [abstract]
Lease Liabilities	22. LEASE LIABILITIES December 31, 2019 RMB Within one year 11,569 Within a period of more than one year but not more than two years 10,887 Within a period of more than two year but not more than five years 16,255 Within a period of more than five years 3,435 42,146 Less: Current portion 11,569 Non-current portion 30,577

Deferred Revenues

Deferred Revenues	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Deferred Revenues	23. DEFERRED REVENUES Deferred revenues as of December 31, 2019 mainly represent the unearned portion of installation fees for wireline services received from customers (Note 17), and the unamortized portion of government grants (Note 18). 2018 2019 RMB RMB Balance at beginning of the year 2,274 1,829 Reductions for the year: Amortization of installation fees (138 ) (90 ) Amortization of government grants (307 ) (284 ) Balance at end of year 1,829 1,455 Representing: Current portion 375 358 Non-current portion 1,454 1,097 1,829 1,455

Share Capital

Share Capital	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Share Capital	24. SHARE CAPITAL December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Registered, issued and fully paid 67,054,958,321 ordinary domestic shares of RMB1.00 each 67,055 67,055 13,877,410,000 overseas listed H shares of RMB1.00 each 13,877 13,877 80,932 80,932 All ordinary domestic shares and H shares rank pari passu

Reserves

Reserves	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Reserves	25. RESERVES Capital Share premium Surplus reserves General Other reserves Exchange Retained earnings Total RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB (Note (i)) (Note (iii)) (Note (v)) (Note (ii)) Balance as of January 1, 2017 17,160 10,746 72,611 — 711 (622 ) 133,839 234,445 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — (293 ) (259 ) 18,617 18,065 Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group (Note 1) (80 ) — — — — — (7 ) (87 ) Acquisition of non-controlling interests 46 — — — — — — 46 Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (7,530 ) (7,530 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,686 — — — (1,686 ) — Others — — — — (4 ) — — (4 ) Balance as of December 31, 2017 17,126 10,746 74,297 — 414 (881 ) 143,233 244,935 Changes in accounting policies — — 302 — — — 2,673 2,975 Balance as of January 1, 2018 17,126 10,746 74,599 — 414 (881 ) 145,906 247,910 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — (249 ) 154 21,210 21,115 Disposal of investments in equity instruments at fair value — — — — (5 ) — 5 — Contribution from non-controlling 680 — — — — — — 680 Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (7,568 ) (7,568 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,875 — — — (1,875 ) — Balance as of December 31, 2018 17,806 10,746 76,474 — 160 (727 ) 157,678 262,137 Change in accounting policy (Note 2) — — (243 ) — — — (2,197 ) (2,440 ) Balance as of January 1, 2019, as restated 17,806 10,746 76,231 — 160 (727 ) 155,481 259,697 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — 455 102 20,517 21,074 Acquisition of non-controlling interests 3 — — — — — — 3 Share of an associate’s other changes in reserves (305 ) — — — — — — (305 ) Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (8,891 ) (8,891 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,812 — — — (1,812 ) — Appropriations to general risk reserve of Finance Company (Note (v)) — — — 23 — — (23 ) — Balance as of December 31, 2019 17,504 10,746 78,043 23 615 (625 ) 165,272 271,578 Notes: (i) Capital reserve of the Group mainly represents the sum of (a) the difference between the carrying amount of the Company’s net assets and the par value of the Company’s shares issued upon its formation; (b) the difference between the consideration paid by the Group for the entities acquired, other than the Fifth Acquired Group, from China Telecommunications Corporation, which were accounted for as equity transactions as disclosed in Note 1, and the historical carrying amount of the net assets of these acquired entities; and (c) the difference between the consideration paid by the Group for the acquisition of non-controlling non-controlling The difference between the consideration paid by the Group and the historical carrying amount of the net assets of the Fifth Acquisition was recorded as a deduction of retained earnings. Capital reserve of the Company represents the difference between the carrying amount of the Company’s net assets and the par value of the Company’s shares issued upon its formation. (ii) Other reserves of the Group and the Company represent primarily the change in the fair value of investment instruments at FVTOCI and the deferred tax liabilities recognized due to the change in fair value of those (iii) The surplus reserves consist of statutory surplus reserve and discretionary surplus reserve. According to the Company’s Articles of Association, the Company is required to transfer 10% of its net profit, as determined in accordance with the lower of the amount determined under the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and the amount determined under IFRSs, to the statutory surplus reserve until such reserve balance reaches 50% of the registered capital. The transfer to this reserve must be made before distribution of any dividend to shareholders. For the year ended December 31, 2019, the net profit of the Company determined in accordance with the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and IFRS are the same. For the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company transferred RMB1,812 , being 10% of the year’s net profit, to this reserve. For the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company transferred R M The Company did not transfer any discretionary surplus reserve for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2019. As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the amount of discretionary surplus reserve was RMB46,079. The statutory and discretionary surplus reserves are non-distributable (iv) According to the Company’s Articles of Association, the amount of retained earnings available for distribution to shareholders of the Company is the lower of the amount of the Company’s retained earnings determined in accordance with the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and the amount determined in accordance with IFRSs. As of December 31, 2018, January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019, the amount of retained earnings available for distribution was RMB133,076, RMB130,892 and RMB138,312 respectively, being the amount determined in accordance with IFRSs. Final dividend of approximately RMB9,126 in respect of the financial year 2019 proposed after the end of the reporting period has not been recognized as a liability in the consolidated financial statements at the end of the reporting period (Note 32). (v) Pursuant to “Requirements on Impairment Allowance for Financial Institutions” (Caijin [2012] No. 20) issued by the Ministry of Finance of the PRC effective on July 1, 2012 (the “Requirements”), Finance Company establishe d

Operating Revenues

Operating Revenues	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Operating Revenues	26. OPERATING REVENUES Disaggregation of revenues Notes 2018 2019 RMB RMB Type of goods or services Revenue from contracts with customers Voice (i ) 50,811 45,146 Internet (ii ) 190,871 197,244 Information and application services (iii ) 83,478 87,623 Telecommunications network resource and equipment services (iv ) 20,211 21,978 Sales of goods and others (v ) 27,450 17,906 Subtotal 372,821 369,897 Revenue from other sources (vi ) 4,303 5,837 Total operating revenues 377,124 375,734 Timing of revenue recognition A point in time 24,496 14,591 Over time 352,628 361,143 Total operating revenues 377,124 375,734 Notes: (i) Represent the aggregate amount of voice usage fees, installation fees and interconnections fees charged to customers for the provision of telephony services. (ii) Represent amounts charge d (iii) Represent primarily the aggregate amount of fees charged to customers for the provision of Internet data center service, system integration services, e-Surfing (iv) Represent amounts charged to other domestic telecommunications operators and enterprise customers for the provision of telecommunications network resource and equipment services. (v) Represent primarily revenue from sales, and repair and maintenance of telecommunications equipment as well as the resale of mobile services (MVNO). (vi) Represent primarily revenue from property rental and other revenues. As of December 31, 201 8 9 For the year ended December 31, 2017 The components of the Group’s operating revenues are as follows: 2017 RMB Voice 61,678 Internet 172,554 Information and application services 73,044 Telecommunications network resource and equipment services 19,125 Others 39,828 366,229

Network Operations and Support

Network Operations and Support Expenses	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Network Operations and Support Expenses	27. NETWORK OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT EXPENSES Year ended December 31, Note 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Operating and maintenance 55,360 64,056 65,087 Utility 12,522 13,477 13,818 Network resources usage and related fee (i ) 26,926 29,434 20,976 Others 9,161 9,095 9,918 103,969 116,062 109,799 Note: (i) Network resources usage and related fee for the year ended December 31, 2019 includes the variable lease payments and fee for non-lease low-value non-lease

Personnel Expenses

Personnel Expenses	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Personnel Expenses	28. PERSONNEL EXPENSES Personnel expenses are attributable to the following functions: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Network operations and support 38,574 40,388 42,214 Selling, general and administrative 17,469 19,348 21,353 56,043 59,736 63,567

Other Operating Expenses

Other Operating Expenses	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Other Operating Expenses	29. OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Interconnection charges (i ) 12,223 12,878 12,683 Cost of goods sold (ii ) 31,712 23,185 13,413 Donations 23 20 1 Others (iii ) 1,654 1,614 1,695 45,612 37,697 27,792 Notes: (i) Interconnection charges represent amounts incurred for the use of other domestic and foreign telecommunications operators’ networks for delivery of voice and data traffic that originate from the Group’s telecommunications networks. (ii) Cost of goods sold primarily represents cost of telecommunications equipment sold. (iii) Others mainly include tax and surcharges other than value-added tax and income tax.

Net Finance Costs

Net Finance Costs	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Net Finance Costs	30. NET FINANCE COSTS Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Interest expense on short-term and long-term debts 3,913 3,278 2,623 Interest expense on lease liabilities — — 1,607 Less: Interest expense capitalized* (327 ) (185 ) (140 ) Net interest expense 3,586 3,093 4,090 Interest income (429 ) (306 ) (492 ) Foreign exchange losses 664 423 680 Foreign exchange gains (530 ) (502 ) (639 ) 3,291 2,708 3,639 * 3.9% - 4.9 % 3.8%-4.4 % 3.5%-4.4 %

Income Tax

Income Tax	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Income Tax	31. INCOME TAX Income tax in the profit or loss comprises: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Provision for PRC income tax 3,147 3,408 781 Provision for income tax of other tax jurisdictions 123 120 105 Deferred taxation 2,922 3,282 5,436 6,192 6,810 6,322 A reconciliation of the expected tax expense with the actual tax expense is as follows: Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Earnings before income tax 24,953 28,148 27,034 Expected income tax expense at statutory tax rate of 25% (i ) 6,238 7,037 6,759 Differential tax rate on PRC subsidiaries’ and branches’ income (i ) (108 ) (291 ) (315 ) Differential tax rate on other subsidiaries’ income (ii ) (82 ) (58 ) (129 ) Non-deductible (iii ) 380 537 979 Non-taxable (iv ) (112 ) (319 ) (460 ) Others (v ) (124 ) (96 ) (512 ) Actual income tax expense 6,192 6,810 6,322 Notes: (i) Except for certain subsidiaries and branches which are mainly taxed at a preferential rate of 15%, the provision for mainland China income tax is based on a statutory rate of 25% of the assessable income of the Company, its mainland China subsidiaries and branches as determined in accordance with the relevant income tax rules and regulations of the PRC. (ii) Income tax provisions of the Company’s subsidiaries in Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions of the PRC, and in other countries are based on the subsidiaries’ assessable income and income tax rates applicable in the respective tax jurisdictions which range from 8% to 35%. (iii) Amounts represent miscellaneous expenses in excess of statutory deductible limits for tax purposes. (iv) Amounts represent miscellaneous income which are not subject to income tax. (v) Amounts primarily represent settlement of tax filing differences of prior year annual tax return and other tax benefits such as additional tax deduction on research and development expenses.

Dividends

Dividends	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Dividends	32. DIVIDENDS Pursuant to a resolution passed at the Board of Directors’ meeting on March 24, 2020, a final dividend of equivalent to HK$0.125 per share totaling approximately RMB9,126 for the year ended December 31, 2019 was proposed for shareholders’ approval at the Annual General Meeting. The dividend has not been provided for in the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019. Pursuant to the shareholders’ approval at the Annual General Meeting held on May 29, 2019, a final dividend of RMB0.109851 (equivalent to HK$0.125) per share totaling RMB8,891 in respect of the year ended December 31, 2018 was declared, and paid on July 26, 2019. Pursuant to the shareholders’ approval at the Annual General Meeting held on May 28, 2018, a final dividend of RMB0.093512 (equivalent to HK$0.115) per share totaling RMB7,568 in respect of the year ended December 31, 2017 was declared, and paid on July 27, 2018.

Basic Earnings Per Share

Basic Earnings Per Share	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Basic Earnings Per Share	33. BASIC EARNINGS PER SHARE The calculation of basic earnings per share for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2018 and 2019 is based on the profit attributable to equity holders of the Company of RMB18,617, RMB21,210 and RMB20,517, respectively, divided by 80,932,368,321 shares. The amount of diluted earnings per share is not presented as there were no dilutive potential ordinary shares in existence for the periods presented.

Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Commitments and Contingencies	34. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Operating lease commitments The Group leases business premises and equipment through non-cancellable operating leases. None of the rental agreements contain escalation provisions that may require higher future rental payments nor impose restrictions on dividends, additional debt and/or further leasing. As of December 31, 2018, the Group’s future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases are as follows: RMB 2019 15,658 2020 14,466 2021 13,440 2022 12,682 2023 3,461 Thereafter 6,098 Total minimum lease payments 65,805 Operating lease commitment as set out above includes the lease commitment to China Tower for the tower assets lease fee. The amount was calculated based on the current lease condition and did not take into consideration the contingent adjustment to the lease charges resulting from the change in sharing of certain towers amongst the telecommunications operators. Total rental expense in respect of operating leases charged to profit or loss for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2018 were RMB25,493 and RMB27,810, respectively. Capital commitments As of December 31, 2019, the Group had capital commitments as follows: RMB Contracted for but not provided - property 1,810 - telecommunications network plant and equipment 19,131 20,941 Contingent liabilities (a) The Group was advised by their PRC lawyers that no material contingent liabilities were assumed by the Group. (b) As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the Group did not have contingent liabilities in respect of guarantees given to banks in respect of banking facilities granted to other parties, or other forms of contingent liabilities. Legal contingencies The Group is a defendant in certain lawsuits as well as the named party in other proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. Management has assessed the likelihood of an unfavo u

Financial Instruments

Financial Instruments	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Financial Instruments	35. FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Financial assets of the Group include cash and cash equivalents, bank deposits, equity instrument, accounts receivable, financial assets at FVTPL and financial assets included in prepayments and other current assets. Financial liabilities of the Group include short-term and long-term debt, accounts payable and financial liabilities included in accrued expenses and other payables. (a) Fair Value Measurements Based on IFRS 13, “ Fair Value Measurement • Level 1: fair values measured using quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical financial instruments • Level 2: fair values measured using quoted prices in active markets for similar financial instruments, or using valuation techniques in which all significant inputs are directly or indirectly based on observable market data • Level 3: fair values measured using valuation techniques in which any significant input is not based on observable market data The fair values of the Group’s financial instruments (other than long-term debt and financial instruments measured at fair value) approximate their carrying amounts due to the short-term maturity of these instruments. The listed equity securities investment included in the The fair values of long-term debt is estimated by discounting future cash flows using current market interest rates offered to the Group for debt with substantially the same characteristics and maturities. The fair value measurement of long-term debt is categorized as level 2. The interest rates used by the Group in estimating the fair values of long-term debt, having considered the foreign currency denomination of the debt, ranged from 3.7% to 4.9% (2018: 1.0% to 4.9%). As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the carrying amounts and fair value of the Group’s long-term debt was as follows: December 31, 2018 December 31, 2019 Carrying amount Fair value Carrying amount Fair value RMB RMB RMB RMB Long-term debt 45,991 44,968 36,495 35,780 During the year, there were no transfers among instruments in level 1, level 2 or level 3. (b) Risks The Group’s financial instruments are exposed to three main types of risks, namely, credit risk, liquidity risk and market risk (which mainly comprises of interest rate risk and foreign currency exchange rate risk). The Group’s overall risk management program focuses on the unpredictability of financial markets and seeks to minimize potential adverse effects on the Group’s financial performance. Risk management is carried out under policies approved by the Board of Directors. The Board provides principles for overall risk management, as well as policies covering specific areas, such as liquidity risk, credit risk, and market risk. The Board regularly reviews these policies and authorizes changes if necessary based on operating and market conditions and other relevant risks. The following summarizes the qualitative and quantitative disclosures for each of the three main types of risks: (i) Credit risk Credit risk refers to the risk that a counterparty will default on its contractual obligations resulting in a financial loss to the Group. For the Group, this arises mainly from deposits it maintains at financial institutions and credit it provides to customers for the provision of telecommunications services. Cash and cash equivalents and short-term bank deposits To limit exposure to credit risk relating to deposits, the Group primarily places cash deposits only with large state-owned financial institutions in the PRC with acceptable credit ratings. The credit risks on bank balances are limited because the counterparties are banks with high credit ratings. Accounts receivable and contract assets arising from contracts with customers For accounts receivable and contract assets, management performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers’ financial condition and generally does not require collateral on accounts receivable and contract assets. These evaluations focus on the customer’s past history of making payments when due and current ability to pay, and take into account information specific to the customer as well as pertaining to the economic environment in which the customer operates. In addition, the Group performs impairment assessment under ECL model upon application of IFRS 9 on trade balances individually or based on provision matrix. Furthermore, the Group has a diversified base of customers with no single customer contributing more than 10% of revenues for the periods presented. The Group measures loss allowances for accounts receivable and contract assets at an amount equal to lifetime ECL, which is calculated using a provision matrix, or individually assessed for those debtors with significant balances or credit impaired debtors. As different loss patterns were indicated during the analysis of the Group’s historical credit loss experience between telephone and Internet subscribers and enterprise customers, the following tables provide information about the Group’s exposure to credit risk and ECL for accounts receivables and contract assets from telephone and Internet subscribers and enterprise customers, respectively, as of December 31, 2018 and 2019: Accounts receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers: December 31, 2018 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 2 % 8,376 158 1 to 3 months 20 % 2,117 420 4 to 6 months 60 % 839 502 7 to 12 months 80 % 1,093 875 Over 12 months 100 % 943 943 13,368 2,898 December 31, 2019 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 2 % 7,545 141 1 to 3 months 20 % 1,777 349 4 to 6 months 60 % 739 444 7 to 12 months 80 % 1,083 867 Over 12 months 100 % 1,002 1,002 12,146 2,803 Accounts receivable and contract assets from enterprise customers: December 31, 2018 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB 1 to 6 months 2 % 4,478 109 7 to 12 months 20 % 800 157 1 to 2 years 60 % 479 290 2 to 3 years 90 % 225 202 Over 3 years 100 % 298 298 6,280 1,056 December 31, 2019 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB 1 to 6 months 2 % 5,452 102 7 to 12 months 20 % 1,428 239 1 to 2 years 60 % 621 353 2 to 3 years 90 % 258 224 Over 3 years 100 % 371 364 8,130 1,282 As of December 31, 2019, the loss allowance for accounts receivable and contract assets was RMB4,692 and RMB8 (2018: RMB 4,680 and RMB8 ) 9 8 or Expected loss rates are based on actual loss experience over the past 1 to 3 year s Movement in the loss allowance account in respect of accounts receivable during the year is as follows: 2018 2019 RMB RMB At beginning of year 4,761 4,680 Impairment losses for ECL 2,008 1,653 Amounts written off (2,089 ) (1,641 ) At end of year 4,680 4,692 Liquidity risk refers to the risk that funds will not be available to meet liabilities as they fall due, and results from timing and amount mismatches of cash inflow and outflow. The Group manages liquidity risk by maintaining sufficient cash balances and adequate amount of committed banking facilities to meet its funding needs, including working capital, principal and interest payments on debts, dividend payments, capital expenditures and new investments for a set minimum period of between 3 to 6 months. The following table sets out the remaining contractual maturities at the end of the reporting period of the Group’s financial liabilities and lease liabilities, which are based on contractual undiscounted cash flows (including interest payments computed using contractual rates or, if floating, based on prevailing rates at the end of the reporting period) and the earliest date the Group would be required to repay: 2018 Carrying Total Within 1 More than 1 More than 2 More RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Short-term debt 49,537 51,091 51,091 — — — Long-term debt 45,991 52,625 2,602 19,604 25,061 5,358 Accounts payable 107,887 107,887 107,887 — — — Accrued expenses and other payables 43,497 43,497 43,497 — — — Finance lease obligations 216 241 112 40 82 7 247,218 255,341 205,189 19,644 25,143 5,365 2019 Carrying Total Within 1 More than 1 More than 2 More RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Short-term debt 42,527 43,697 43,697 — — — Long-term debt 36,495 40,791 4,625 1,184 30,824 4,158 Accounts payable 102,616 102,616 102,616 — — — Accrued expenses and other payables 48,516 48,516 48,516 — — — Lease liabilities 42,146 45,535 12,846 11,794 17,266 3,629 272,300 281,155 212,300 12,978 48,090 7,787 Management believes that the Group’s current cash on hand, expected cash flows from operations and available credit facilities from banks (Note 18) will be sufficient to meet the Group’s working capital requirements and repay its borrowings and obligations when they become due. (iii) Interest rate risk The Group’s interest rate risk exposure arises primarily from its short-term debt and long-term debt. Debts carrying interest at variable rates and at fixed rates expose the Group to cash flow interest rate risk and fair value interest rate risk respectively. The Group manages its exposure to interest rate risk by closely monitoring the change in the market interest rate. The following table sets out the interest rate profile of the Group’s debt at the end of the reporting period: 2018 2019 Effective Effective interest rate interest rate % RMB % RMB Fixed rate debt: Short-term debt 3.2 49,347 2.5 29,022 Long-term debt 3.3 45,991 3.1 36,495 95,338 65,517 Variable rate debt: Short-term debt 4.2 190 3.8 13,505 190 13,505 Total debt 95,528 79,022 Fixed rate debt as a percentage of total debt 99.8 % 82.9 % Management does not expect the increase or decrease in interest rate will materially affect the Group’s financial position because (iv) Foreign currency exchange rate risk Foreign currency exchange rate risk arises on financial instruments that are denominated in a currency other than the functional currency in which they are measured. The Group’s foreign currency risk exposure relates to bank deposits and borrowings denominated primarily in US dollars, Euros and Hong Kong dollars. Management does not expect the appreciation or depreciation of the Renminbi against foreign currencies will materially affect the Group’s financial position and result of operations because 78.0% (December 31, 2018: 64.0%) of the Group’s cash and cash equivalents and 99.4% (December 31, 2018: 99.4%) of the Group’s short-term and long-term debt as of December 31, 2019 are denominated in Renminbi. Details of bank loans denominated in other currencies are set out in Note 18.

Capital Management

Capital Management	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Capital Management	36. CAPITAL MANAGEMENT The Group’s primary objectives when managing capital are to safeguard the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern, so that it can continue to provide investment returns for shareholders and benefits for other stakeholders, by pricing products and services commensurately with the level of risk and by securing access to finance at a reasonable cost. Management regularly reviews and manages its capital structure to maintain a balance between the higher shareholder returns that might be possible with higher levels of borrowings and the advantages and security afforded by a sound capital position, and makes adjustments to the capital structure in light of changes in economic conditions. Management monitors its capital structure on the basis of total debt-to-total ( 1 , debt-to-total Except Finance Company is subject to certain capital requirements imposed by China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries are subject to externally imposed capital requirements.

Reconciliation of Liabilities A

Reconciliation of Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Reconciliation of Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities	37. RECONCILIATION OF LIABILITIES ARISING FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES The table below details changes in the Group’s liabilities arising from financing activities, including both cash and non-cash Short-term debt Long-term debt Lease Dividend payable Deposits Other payables in Total RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions (Note (i)) Balance as at January 1, 2018 54,558 49,742 77 — — 206 104,583 Financing cash flows (5,021 ) (4,073 ) (73 ) (7,745 ) — (226 ) (17,138 ) New finance leases — — 200 — — — 200 Interest expenses — 304 12 — — — 316 Foreign exchange loss — 18 — — — — 18 Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests — — — — — 20 20 Distribution to non-controlling interests — — — 177 — — 177 Dividends declared — — — 7,568 — — 7,568 Balance as at December 31, 2018 49,537 45,991 216 — — — 95,744 Change in accounting policy — — 45,648 — — — 45,648 Balance as at January 1, 2019 49,537 45,991 45,864 — — — 141,392 Financing cash flows (7,010 ) (9,782 ) (10,699 ) (9,072 ) 4,098 (8 ) (32,473 ) New leases — — 8,856 — — — 8,856 Lease modifications — — (589 ) — — — (589 ) Transferred to accounts payables — — (2,900 ) — — — (2,900 ) Interest expenses — 284 1,607 — — — 1,891 Foreign exchange loss — 2 7 — — — 9 Acquisition of non-controlling interests — — — — — 8 8 Distribution to non-controlling interests — — — 181 — — 181 Dividends declared — — — 8,891 — — 8,891 Balance as at December 31, 2019 42,527 36,495 42,146 — 4,098 — 125,266 Notes: (i) As of December 31, 2019, the balance of deposits with Finance Company amounting to RMB4,098 (December 31, 2018: nil) were included in amounts due to China Telecom Group in accrued expenses and other payables (Note 20). (ii) For the year ended December 31, 2019, other than the net financing cash outflows totalling RMB32,473 as presented above: E-surfing Pay, a subsidiary of the Company, received RMB90 as part of the total consideration amounting to RMB945 in respect of contribution from non-controlling interests (Note 20); Finance Company, a subsidiary of the Company, received RMB1,500 in respect of contribution from non-controlling interests (Note 25), and placed statutory reserve deposits amounting to RMB405 at the People’s Bank of China which is included in the balance of short-term bank deposits as of

Related Party Transactions

Related Party Transactions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Related Party Transactions	38. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (a) Transactions with China Telecom Group The Group is a part of companies under China Telecommunications Corporation, a company owned by the PRC government, and has significant transactions and business relationships with members of China Telecom Group. The principal transactions with China Telecom Group which were carried out in the ordinary course of business are as follows. Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Construction and engineering services (i) 18,672 16,396 14,014 Receiving ancillary services (ii) 16,072 16,744 18,571 Interconnection revenues (iii) 48 80 97 Interconnection charges (iii) 193 204 183 Receiving community services (iv) 3,028 3,296 3,464 Net transaction amount of centralized services (v) 727 519 133 Property lease income (vi) 53 48 57 Property lease related expenses (vii) 654 713 577 Addition to right-of-use assets (vii) — — 284 Interest expense on lease liabilities (vii) — — 11 Provision of IT services (viii) 642 531 464 Receiving IT services (viii) 1,812 1,895 2,175 Purchases of telecommunications equipment and materials (ix) 4,248 3,760 3,538 Sales of telecommunications equipment and materials (ix) 3,291 2,760 1,444 Internet applications channel services (x) 344 298 108 Interest on amounts due to and loans from China Telecom Group (xi) 2,720 2,099 1,485 Others (xii) 190 186 189 Net deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company (xiii) — — 4,098 Interest expense on the deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company (xiii) — — 7 Notes: (i) Represent construction and engineering as well as design and supervisory services provided by China Telecom Group. (ii) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group in respect of ancillary services such as repairs and maintenance of telecommunications equipment and facilities and certain customer services. (iii) Represent amounts received and receivable from/paid and payable to China Telecom Group for interconnection of local and domestic long distance calls. (iv) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group in respect of cultural, educational, health care and other community services. (v) Represent net amount shared between the Company and China Telecom Group for costs associated with centralized services. The amount represents amounts received or receivable for the net amount of centralized services. (vi) Represent amounts of property lease fee received and receivable from China Telecom Group for leasing of properties. (vii) Represent amounts in relation to the leasing of properties from China Telecom Group. Property lease related expenses for the year ended 31 December 2019 include the fee for short-term leases, leases of low-value non-lease (viii) Represent IT services provided to and received from China Telecom Group. (ix) Represent the amount of telecommunications equipment and materials purchased from/sold to China Telecom Group and commission paid and payable for procurement services provided by China Telecom Group. (x) Represent amounts received and receivable from China Telecom Group in respect of Internet applications channel services, including the provision of telecommunications channel and applications support platform and billing and deduction services, etc. (xi) Represent interest paid and payable to China Telecom Group with respect to the amount due to China Telecommunications Corporation and loans from China Telecom Group (Note 18). (xii) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group primarily for usage of CDMA mobile telecommunications network (“CDMA network”) facilities located in Xizang Autonomous Region, certain inter-provincial transmission optic fibers within its service regions and land use rights. (xiii) Represent amounts related to financial services provided by Finance Company to China Telecom Group, including lending services, deposit services and other financial services. Amounts due from/to China Telecom Group are summarized as follows: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Accounts receivable 1,327 1,188 Contract assets 24 27 Prepayments and other current assets 1,035 1,233 Total amounts due from China Telecom Group 2,386 2,448 Accounts payable 20,983 19,531 Accrued expenses and other payables 2,171 6,069 Contract liabilities 145 162 Lease liabilities — 389 Short-term debt 8,584 6,621 Long-term debt 37,000 23,300 Total amounts due to China Telecom Group 68,883 56,072 Amounts due from/to China Telecom Group, other than short-term debt, long-term debt, deposit with Finance Company included in accrued expenses and other payables (Note 37(i)), bear no interest, are unsecured and are repayable in accordance with contractual terms which are similar to those terms offered by third parties. The terms and conditions associated with short-term debt and long-term debt due to China Telecom Group are set out in Note 18. As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, no material loss allowance was recognized in respect of amounts due from China Telecom Group. (b) Transactions with China Tower The principal transactions with China Tower are as follows: Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Tower assets lease related expenses (i ) 15,389 16,063 10,543 Additions of right-of-use assets (i ) — — 3,735 Interest expense on lease liabilities (i ) — — 938 Provision of IT services (ii ) 49 32 31 Notes: (i) Represent amounts in relation to the lease of tower assets. Tower assets lease related expenses for the year ended 31 December 2019 includes the variable lease payments not depending on an index or a rate and fee for non-lease (ii) Represent IT and other ancillary services provided to China Tower. Amounts due from/to China Tower are summarized as follows: 2018 2019 RMB RMB Accounts receivable 10 5 Prepayments and other current assets 293 192 Total amounts due from China Tower 303 197 Accounts payable 2,850 4,312 Accrued expenses and other payables 1,246 1,261 Contract liabilities — 1 Lease liabilities — 24,474 Total amounts due to China Tower 4,096 30,048 Amounts due from/to China Tower bear no interest, are unsecured and are repayable in accordance with contractual terms which are similar to those terms offered by third parties. As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, no material loss allowance was recognized in respect of amounts due from China Tower. (c) Key management personnel compensation Key management personnel are those persons having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the activities of the Group, directly or indirectly, including directors and supervisors of the Group. Key management personnel compensation of the Group is summarized as follows: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB thousands thousands thousands Short-term employee benefits 7,804 7,942 9,604 Post-employment benefits 816 799 1,199 8,620 8,741 10,803 The above remuneration is included in personnel expenses. (d) Contributions to post-employment benefit plans The Group participates in various defined contribution post-employment benefit plans organized by municipal, autonomous regional and provincial governments for its employees. Further details of the Group’s post-employment benefit plans are disclosed in Note 39. (e) Transactions with other government-related entities in the PRC The Group is a government-related enterprise and operates in an economic regime currently dominated by entities directly or indirectly controlled by the People’s Republic of China through government authorities, agencies, affiliations and other organizations (collectively referred to as “government-related entities”). Apart from transactions with parent company and its fellow subsidiaries (Note 38(a)), the Group has transactions that are collectively but not individually significant with other government-related entities, which include but not limited to the following: • rendering and receiving services, including but not limited to telecommunications services • sales and purchases of goods, properties and other assets • lease of assets • depositing and borrowing • use of public utilities These transactions are conducted in the ordinary course of the Group’s business on terms comparable to the terms of transactions with other entities that are not government-related. The Group prices its telecommunications services and products based on government-regulated tariff rates, where applicable, or based on commercial negotiations. The Group has also established procurement policies and approval processes for purchases of products and services, which do not depend on whether the counterparties are government-related entities or not. The directors of the Company believe the above information provides appropriate disclosure of related party transactions.

Post-employment Benefits Plans

Post-employment Benefits Plans	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Post-employment Benefits Plans	39. POST-EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS PLANS As stipulated by the regulations of the PRC, the Group participates in various defined contribution retirement plans organized by municipal, autonomous regional and provincial governments for its employees. The Group is required to make contributions to the retirement plans at rates ranging from 14% to 20% of the salaries, bonuses and certain allowances of the employees. A member of the plan is entitled to a pension equal to a fixed proportion of the salary prevailing at the member’s retirement date. Other than the above, the Group also participates in supplementary defined contribution retirement plans managed by independent external parties whereby the Group is required to make contributions to the retirement plans at fixed rates of the employees’ salaries, bonuses and certain allowances. The Group has no other material obligation for the payment of pension benefits associated with these plans beyond the annual contributions described above. The Group’s contributions for the above plans for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2018 and 2019 were RMB6,884 and RMB7,256 and RMB8,616, respectively. The amount payable for contributions to the above defined contribution retirement plans as of December 31, 2018 and 2019 was RMB675 and RMB755, respectively.

Share Appreciation Rights

Share Appreciation Rights	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Share Appreciation Rights	40. SHARE APPRECIATION RIGHTS The Group implemented a share appreciation rights plan for members of its management to provide incentives to these employees. Under this plan, share appreciation rights are granted in units with each unit representing one H share. No shares will be issued under the share appreciation rights plan. Upon exercise of the share appreciation rights, a recipient will receive, subject to any applicable withholding tax, a cash payment in RMB, translated from the Hong Kong dollar amount equal to the product of the number of share appreciation rights exercised and the difference between the exercise price and market price of the Company’s H shares at the date of exercise based on the applicable exchange rate between RMB and Hong Kong dollar at the date of the exercise. The Company recognizes compensation expense of the share appreciation rights over the applicable period. In November 2018, the Company approved the granting of 2,394 million share appreciation right units to eligible employees. Under the terms of this grant, all share appreciation rights had a contractual life of five years from date of grant and an exercise price of HK$3.81 per unit. A recipient of share appreciation rights may exercise the rights in stages commencing November 2020. As of each of the third, fourth and fifth anniversary of the date of grant, the total number of share appreciation rights exercisable may not in aggregate exceed 33.3%, 66.7% and 100.0%, respectively, of the total share appreciation rights granted to such person. During the year ended December 31, 201 8 9 As of December 31, 201 8 9

Principal Subsidiaries

Principal Subsidiaries	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Investments accounted for using equity method [abstract]
Principal Subsidiaries	41. PRINCIPAL SUBSIDIARIES Details of the Company’s subsidiaries which principally affected the results, assets and liabilities of the Group as of December 31, 2019 are as follows: Name of company Type of legal entity Date of incorporation Place of incorporation and Registered /issued capital (in RMB million unless Principal activities China Telecom System Integration Co., Limited Limited Company September 13, 2001 PRC 542 Provision of system integration and consulting services China Telecom Global Limited Limited Company February 25, 2000 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the PRC HK$168 million Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom (Americas) Corporation Limited Company November 22, 2001 The United States of America US$43 million Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom Best Tone Information Service Co., Limited Limited Company August 15, 2007 PRC 350 Provision of Best Tone information services China Telecom (Macau) Company Limited Limited Company October 15, 2004 Macau Special Administrative Region of the PRC MOP60 million Provision of telecommunications services Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited Limited Company July 1, 2005 PRC 500 Sales of telecommunications terminals China Telecom (Singapore) Pte. Limited Limited Company October 5, 2006 Singapore S$1,000,001 Provision of international value-added network services E-surfing Limited Company March 3, 2011 PRC 635 Provision of Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited Limited Company May 5, 1984 PRC 91 Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom (Australia) Pty Ltd Limited Company January 10, 2011 Australia AUD1 million Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom Korea Co.,Ltd Limited Company May 16, 2012 South Korea KRW500 million Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom (Malaysia) SDN BHD Limited Company June 26, 2012 Malaysia MYR3,723,500 Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom Information Technology (Vietnam) Co., Ltd Limited Company July 9, 2012 Vietnam VND10,500 million Provision of international value-added network services iMUSIC Culture & Technology Co., Ltd. Limited Company June 9, 2013 PRC 250 Provision of music production and related information services China Telecom (Europe) Limited Limited Company March 2, 2006 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland GBP16.15 million Provision of telecommunications services Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd. Limited Company August 19, 2013 PRC 11 Provision of instant messenger service Tianyi Capital Holding Co., Ltd. Limited Company November 30, 2017 PRC 5,000 Capital Investment and provision of consulting services China Telecom Leasing Corporation Limited. Limited Company November 30, 2018 PRC 5,000 Provision of finance lease service China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd . (“Finance Company”) Limited Company January 8, 2019 PRC 5,000 Provision of capital and financial management services Except for Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited which is 51% owned by the Company, Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd. which is 65% owned by the Company and E-surfing Compa n non-controlling None of the subsidiaries had issued any debt securities at the end of the year.

Accounting Estimates and Judgme

Accounting Estimates and Judgments	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Accounting Estimates and Judgments	42. ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES AND JUDGMENTS The Group’s financial position and results of operations are sensitive to accounting methods, assumptions and estimates that underlie the preparation of the consolidated financial statements. Management bases the assumptions and estimates on historical experience and on other factors that the management believes to be reasonable and which form the basis for making judgments about matters that are not readily apparent from other sources. On an on-going The selection of significant accounting policies, the judgments and other uncertainties affecting application of those policies and the sensitivity of reported results to changes in conditions and assumptions are factors to be considered when reviewing the consolidated financial statements. The significant accounting policies are set forth in Note 3. Management believes the following significant accounting policies involve the most significant judgments and estimates used in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements. Provision of ECL for accounts receivable The Group uses provision matrix to calculate ECL for the accounts receivable. The provision rates are based on customer’s past history of making payments when due and current ability to pay by groupings of various debtors that have similar loss patterns. The provision matrix is based on the Group’s historical default rates taking into consideration reasonable and supportable forward-looking information that is available without undue cost or effort. The historical observed default rates are reassessed annually, and changes in the forward-looking information are considered. In addition, accounts receivable with significant balances or The provision of ECL is sensitive to changes in estimates. The information about the ECL and the Group’s accounts receivable are disclosed in notes 5 and 35. Impairment of goodwill and long-lived assets If circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of a long-lived asset may not be recoverable, the asset may be considered “impaired”, and an impairment loss would be recognized in accordance with accounting policy for impairment of long-lived assets as described in Note 3(h). The carrying amounts of the Group’s long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, right-of-use assets, intangible assets with finite useful lives, construction in progress and contract costs are reviewed periodically to determine whether there is any indication of impairment. These assets are tested for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their recorded carrying amounts may not be recoverable. For goodwill, the impairment testing is performed annually at the end of each reporting period. The recoverable amount of an asset or cash-generating unit is the greater of its value in use and fair value less costs of disposal. When an asset does not generate cash flows largely independent of those from other assets, the recoverable amount is determined for the smallest group of assets that generates cash inflows independently (i.e. a cash-generating unit). In determining the value in use, expected future cash flows generated by the assets are discounted to their present value. An impairment loss is recognized if the carrying amount of an asset or its cash-generating unit exceeds its estimated recoverable amount. It is difficult to precisely estimate fair value of the Group’s long-lived assets because quoted market prices for such assets may not be readily available. In determining the value in use, expected future cash flows generated by the asset are discounted to their present value, which requires significant judgment relating to level of revenue, amount of operating costs and applicable discount rate. Management uses all readily available information in determining an amount that is a reasonable approximation of recoverable amount, including estimates based on reasonable and supportable assumptions and projections of revenue and amount of operating costs. For the year ended December 31, 2019, no provision for impairment loss was made against the carrying value of long-lived assets (2018: Nil). For the year ended December 31, 2017, provision for impairment losses of RMB10 were made against the carrying value of long-lived assets. In determining the recoverable amount of these equipment, significant judgments were required in estimating future cash flows, level of revenue, amount of operating costs and applicable discount rate. Changes in these estimates could have a significant impact on the carrying value of the assets and could result in additional impairment charge or reversal of impairment in future periods. Depreciation and amortization Property, plant and equipment and intangible assets with finite useful lives are depreciated and amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of the assets, after taking into account their estimated residual value. Management reviews the estimated useful lives and residual values of the assets annually in order to determine the amount of depreciation and amortization expense to be recorded during any reporting period. The useful lives and residual values are based on the Group’s historical experience with similar assets and take into account anticipated technological changes. The depreciation and amortization expense for future periods is adjusted if there are significant changes from previous estimates.

Possible Impact of New and Amen

Possible Impact of New and Amendments to Standards Issued But Not Yet Effective For The Annual Accounting Period Ended December 31, 2019	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Possible Impact of New and Amendments to Standards Issued But Not Yet Effective For The Annual Accounting Period Ended December 31, 2019	43. POSSIBLE IMPACT OF NEW AND AMENDMENTS TO STANDARDS ISSUED BUT NOT YET EFFECTIVE FOR THE ANNUAL ACCOUNTING PERIOD ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 Up to the date of issue of these consolidated financial statements, the IASB has issued the following new and amendments to standards which are not yet effective and not early adopted for the annual accounting period ended December 31, 2019: Effective for accounting Amendments to IFRS 3, “Definition of a Business” January 1, 2020 Amendments to IAS 1 and IAS 8, “Definition of Material” January 1, 2020 Amendments to IFRS 9, IAS 39 and IFRS 7, “Interest Rate Benchmark Reform” January 1, 2020 IFRS 17, “Insurance Contracts” January 1, 2021 Amendments to IAS 1 “Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current” January 1, 2022 Amendments to IFRS 10 and IAS 28, “Sale or Contribution of Assets between an Investor and its Associate or Joint Venture” To be determined In addition to the above new and amendments to standards, a revised Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting was issued in 2018. Its consequential amendments, the Amendments to References to the Conceptual Framework in IFRS Standards, will be effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2020. The Group is in the process of making an assessment of the impact that will result from adopting the new and amendments to standards issued by the IASB which are not yet effective for the accounting period ended on December 31, 2019. So far the Group believes that the adoption of these new and amendments to standards is unlikely to have a significant impact on its financial position and the results of operations.

Events After the Reporting Peri

Events After the Reporting Period	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Events After the Reporting Period	44. EVENT S (a) Issue of corporate bonds On March 10, 2020, the Group issued three-year, RMB2,000 corporate bonds to qualified investors in Shanghai Securities Exchange with annual interest rate of 2.90%. (b) The impact of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Epidemic Following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic in early 2020, related prevention and control measures across China and other part of the world have been implemented. In addition, the Group has taken a series of measures to ensure smooth and reliable communications. The continuous pandemic has impacted business development and network construction of the Group. The Group keeps continuous attention on the developments of and changes in this situation, timely assesses and actively responds to its impacts on the financial position, operating results and other aspects of the Group.

Parent and Ultimate Holding Com

Parent and Ultimate Holding Company	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Parent and Ultimate Holding Company	45. PARENT AND ULTIMATE HOLDING COMPANY The parent and ultimate holding company of the Company as of December 31, 2019 is China Telecommunications Corporation, a state-owned enterprise established in the PRC.

Significant Accounting Polici_2

Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
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Basis of preparation	(a) Basis of preparation The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as issued by IASB. The consolidated financial statements of the Group have been prepared on a going concern basis. These consolidated financial statements were approved and authorized by the Board of Directors on March 24, 2020. The consolidated financial statements are prepared on the historical cost basis as modified by the revaluation of certain financial instruments measured at fair value (Note 3(j)). The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with IFRSs requires management to make judgments, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of policies and the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and various other factors that management believes are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis of making the judgments about carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from those estimates. The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognized in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods. Judgments made by management in the application of IFRSs that have significant effect on the consolidated financial statements and major sources of estimation uncertainty are discussed in Note 42.
Basis of consolidation	(b) Basis of consolidation The consolidated financial statements comprise the Company and its subsidiaries and the Group’s interests in associates. A subsidiary is an entity controlled by the Company. When fulfilling the following conditions, the Company has control over an entity: (a) has power over the investee, (b) has exposure, or rights, to variable returns from its involvement with the investee, and (c) has the ability to use its power over the investee to affect the amount of the investor’s returns. When assessing whether the Company has power over that entity, only substantive rights (held by the Company and other parties) are considered. The financial results of subsidiaries are included in the consolidated financial statements from the date that control commences until the date that control ceases, and the profit attributable to non-controlling non-controlling Non-controlling non-controlling Non-controlling non-controlling An associate is an entity, not being a subsidiary, in which the Group exercises significant influence, but not control, over its management. Significant influence is the power to participate in the financial and operating policy decisions of the investee but is not control or joint control over those policies. An investment in an associate is accounted for in the consolidated financial statements under the equity method and is initially recorded at cost, adjusted for any excess of the Group’s share of the acquisition-date fair values of the investee’s net identifiable assets over the cost of the investment (if any) after reassessment. Thereafter, the investment is adjusted for the Group’s equity share of the post-acquisition changes in the associate’s net assets and any impairment loss relating to the investment. When the Group ceases to have significant influence over an associate, it is accounted for as a disposal of the entire interest in that investee, with a resulting gain or loss being recognized in profit or loss. Any interest retained in that former investee at the date when significant influence is lost is recognized at fair value and this amount is regarded as the fair value on initial recognition of a financial asset. All significant intercompany balances and transactions and unrealized gains arising from intercompany transactions are eliminated on consolidation. Unrealized gains arising from transactions with associates are eliminated to the extent of the Group’s interest in the entity. Unrealized losses are eliminated in the same way as unrealized gains, but only to the extent that there is no evidence of impairment.
Foreign currencies	(c) Foreign currencies The accompanying consolidated financial statements are presented in Renminbi (“RMB”). The functional currency of the Company and its subsidiaries in mainland China is RMB. The functional currency of the Group’s foreign operations is the currency of the primary economic environment in which the foreign operations operate. Transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency during the year are translated into the functional currency at the applicable rates of exchange prevailing on the transaction dates. Foreign currency monetary assets and liabilities are translated into the functional currency using the applicable exchange rates at the end of the reporting period. The resulting exchange differences, other than those capitalized as construction in progress (Note 3(e)), are recognized as income or expense in profit or loss. For the periods presented, no exchange differences were capitalized. When preparing the Group’s consolidated financial statements, the results of operations of the Group’s foreign operations are translated into RMB at average rate prevailing during the year. Assets and liabilities of the Group’s foreign operations are translated into RMB at the foreign exchange rates ruling at the end of the reporting period. The resulting exchange differences are recognized in other comprehensive income and accumulated separately in equity in the exchange reserve.
Property, plant and equipment	(d) Property, plant and equipment Property, plant and equipment are initially recorded at cost, less subsequent accumulated depreciation and impairment losses (Note 3(h)). The cost of an asset comprises its purchase price, any directly attributable costs of bringing the asset to working condition and location for its intended use and the cost of borrowed funds used during the periods of construction. Expenditure incurred after the asset has been put into operation, including cost of replacing part of such an item, is capitalized only when it increases the future economic benefits embodied in the item of property, plant and equipment and the cost can be measured reliably. All other expenditure is expensed as it is incurred. Gains or losses arising from retirement or disposal of property, plant and equipment are determined as the difference between the net disposal proceeds and the carrying amount of the respective asset and are recognized as income or expense in the profit or loss on the date of disposal. Depreciation is provided to write off the cost of each asset over its estimated useful life on a straight-line basis, after taking into account its estimated residual value, as follows: Depreciable lives Buildings and improvements 8 to 30 years Telecommunications network plant and equipment 5 to 10 years Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment 5 to 10 years Where parts of an item of property, plant and equipment have different useful lives, the cost of the item is allocated on a reasonable basis between the parts and each part is depreciated separately. Both the useful life of an asset and its residual value are reviewed annually.
Construction in progress	(e) Construction in progress Construction in progress represents buildings, telecommunications network plant and equipment and other equipment and intangible assets under construction and pending installation, and is stated at cost less impairment losses (Note 3(h)). The cost of an item comprises direct costs of construction, capitalization of interest charge, and foreign exchange differences on related borrowed funds to the extent that they are regarded as an adjustment to interest charges during the periods of construction. Capitalization of these costs ceases and the construction in progress is transferred to property, plant and equipment and intangible assets when the asset is substantially ready for its intended use. No depreciation is provided in respect of construction in progress.
Goodwill	(f) Goodwill Goodwill represents the excess of the cost over the Group’s interest in the fair value of the net assets acquired in the CDMA business (as defined in Note 12) acquisition. Goodwill is stated at cost less any accumulated impairment losses. Goodwill is allocated to cash-generating units and is tested annually for impairment (Note 3(h)). On disposal of a cash generating unit during the year, any attributable amount of the goodwill is included in the calculation of the profit or loss on disposal.
Intangible assets	(g) Intangible assets The Group’s intangible assets are primarily software. Software that is not an integral part of any tangible assets, is recorded at cost less subsequent accumulated amortization and impairment losses (Note 3(h)). Amortization of software is mainly calculated on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives, which range from 3 to 5 years.
Impairment of goodwill and long-lived assets	(h) Impairment of goodwill and long-lived assets The carrying amounts of the Group’s long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, right-of-use Before the Group recognizes an impairment loss for assets capitalized as contract costs under IFRS 15, the Group assesses and recognizes any impairment loss on other assets related to the relevant contracts in accordance with applicable standards. Then, impairment loss, if any, for assets capitalized as contract costs is recognized to the extent the carrying amounts exceeds the remaining amount of consideration that the Group expects to receive in exchange for related goods or services less the costs which relate directly to providing those goods or services that have not been recognized as expenses. The assets capitalized as contract costs are then included in the carrying amount of the cash-generating unit to which they belong for the purpose of evaluating impairment of that cash-generating unit. The recoverable amount of an asset or cash-generating unit is the greater of its fair value less costs of disposal and value in use. The recoverable amount of a tangible and an intangible asset is estimated individually. When an asset does not generate cash flows largely independent of those from other assets, the recoverable amount is determined for the smallest group of assets that generates cash inflows independently (i.e. a cash-generating unit). In determining the value in use, expected future cash flows generated by the assets are discounted to their present value using a pre-tax An impairment loss is recognized if the carrying amount of an asset or its cash-generating unit exceeds its estimated recoverable amount. Impairment loss is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. Impairment loss recognized in respect of cash-generating units is allocated first to reduce the carrying amount of any goodwill allocated to the units and then to reduce the carrying amounts of the other assets in the unit (group of units) on a pro rata basis. The Group assesses at the end of each reporting period whether there is any indication that an impairment loss recognized for an asset in prior years may no longer exist. An impairment loss is reversed if there has been a favorable change in the estimates used to determine the recoverable amount. A subsequent increase in the recoverable amount of an asset, when the circumstances and events that led to the write-down cease to exist, is recognized as an income in profit or loss. The reversal is reduced by the amount that would have been recognized as depreciation and amortization had the write-down not occurred. An impairment loss in respect of goodwill is not reversed. For the years presented, no reversal of impairment loss was recognized in profit or loss.
Inventories	(i) Inventories Inventories consist of materials and supplies used in maintaining the telecommunications network and goods for resale. Inventories are valued at cost using the specific identification method or the weighted average cost method, less a provision for obsolescence. Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realizable value. Net realizable value is the estimated selling price in the ordinary course of business less the estimated costs of completion, the estimated costs to make the sale and the related tax expenses.
Financial instruments	(j) Financial instruments Effective January 1, 2018, the Group applied IFRS 9, “Financial instruments” The Group applied IFRS 9 in accordance with the transition provisions set out in IFRS 9, i.e. applied the classification and measurement requirements (including impairment under ECL model) retrospectively to instruments that have not been derecognized as of January 1, 2018 (date of initial application) and not applied the requirements to instruments that have already been derecognized as of January 1, 2018. The difference between carrying amounts as of December 31, 2017 and the carrying amounts as of January 1, 2018 are recognized in and reduced the opening reserves as of January 1, 2018 by RMB716, without restating comparative information. Accordingly, certain comparative information may not be comparable as comparative information was prepared under IAS 39, “ Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement Financial assets and financial liabilities are recognized when the Group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the instrument. All regular way purchases or sales of financial assets are recognized and derecognized on a settlement date basis. Regular way purchases or sales are purchases or sales of financial assets that require delivery of assets within the time frame established by regulation or convention in the market place. Financial assets and financial liabilities are initially measured at fair value except for accounts receivable arising from contracts with customers which are initially measured in accordance with IFRS 15. Transaction costs that are directly attributable to the acquisition or issue of financial assets and financial liabilities, other than financial assets or financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss (“FVTPL”) are added to or deducted from the fair value of the financial assets or financial liabilities, as appropriate, on initial recognition. Transaction costs directly attributable to the acquisition of financial assets or financial liabilities at FVTPL are recognized immediately in profit or loss. The effective interest method is a method of calculating the amortized cost of a financial asset or financial liability and of allocating interest income and interest expense over the relevant period. The effective interest rate is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts and payments (including all fees and points paid or received that form an integral part of the effective interest rate, transaction costs and other premiums or discounts) through the expected life of the financial asset or financial liability, or, where appropriate, a shorter period, to the net carrying amount on initial recognition. Financial assets Classification and subsequent measurement of financial assets (upon application of IFRS 9) (i) Financial assets measured subsequently at amortized cost Financial assets that meet the following conditions are subsequently measured at amortized cost: • the financial asset is held within a business model whose objective is to collect contractual cash flows; and • the contractual terms give rise on specified dates to cash flows that are solely payments of principal and interest on the principal amount outstanding. Interest income is recognized using the effective interest method for financial assets measured subsequently at amortized cost. Interest income is calculated by applying the effective interest rate to the gross carrying amount of a financial asset, except for financial assets that have subsequently become credit-impaired (see below). For financial assets that have subsequently become credit-impaired, interest income is recognized by applying the effective interest rate to the amortized cost of the financial asset from the next reporting period. If the credit risk on the credit-impaired financial instrument improves so that the financial asset is no longer credit-impaired, interest income is recognized by applying the effective interest rate to the gross carrying amount of the financial asset from the beginning of the reporting period following the determination that the asset is no longer credit-impaired. (ii) Equity instruments designated as of fair value through other comprehensive income (“FVTOCI”) At the date of initial application of IFRS 9 / initial recognition of a financial asset, the Group may irrevocably elect to present subsequent changes in fair value of an equity investment in OCI, and accumulate in other reserves, if that equity investment is neither held for trading nor contingent consideration recognized by an acquirer in a business combination to which IFRS 3, “Business Combinations” Dividend from these investments in equity instruments are recognized in profit or loss when the Group’s right to receive the dividends is established, unless the dividends clearly represent a recovery of part of the cost of the investment. Dividends are included in the “investment income” line item in profit or loss. (iii) Financial assets at FVTPL Financial assets that do not meet the criteria for being measured at amortized cost or FVTOCI or designated as FVTOCI are measured at FVTPL. Financial assets at FVTPL are measured at fair value at the end of each reporting period, with any fair value gains or losses recognized in profit or loss. The net gain or loss recognized in profit or loss includes any dividend or interest earned on the financial asset and is included in the “investment income” line item. Impairment of financial assets and other items subject to impairment assessment (upon application of IFRS 9) The Group performs impairment assessment under ECL model on financial assets (including accounts receivable and financial as s Lifetime ECL represents the ECL that will result from all possible default events over the expected life of the relevant instrument. In contrast, 12-month ECL (“12m ECL”) represents the portion of lifetime ECL that is expected to result from default events that are possible within 12 months after the reporting date. Assessments are done based on the Group’s historical credit loss experience, adjusted for factors that are specific to the debtors, general economic conditions and an assessment of both the current conditions at the reporting date as well as the forecast of future conditions. The Group always recognizes lifetime ECL for accounts receivable and contract assets. The ECL on these assets are assessed individually for debtors with significant balances or credit-impaired debtors, and collectively using a provision matrix with appropriate groupings based on shared credit risk characteristics, nature of services provided as well as type of customers, such as receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers and from enterprise customers. For all other instruments, the Group measures the loss allowance equal to 12m ECL, unless when there has been a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition, the Group recognizes lifetime ECL. The assessment of whether lifetime ECL should be recognized is based on significant increases in the likelihood or risk of a default occurring since initial recognition. (i) Significant increase in credit risk In assessing whether the credit risk has increased significantly since initial recognition, the Group compares the risk of a default occurring on the financial instrument as of the reporting date with the risk of a default occurring on the financial instrument as of the date of initial recognition. In making this assessment, the Group considers both quantitative and qualitative information that is reasonable and supportable, including historical experience and forward-looking information that is available without undue cost or effort. In particular, the following information is taken into account when assessing whether credit risk has increased significantly: • failure to make payments of principal or interest on their contractually due dates; • an actual or expected significant deterioration in a financial instrument’s external or internal credit rating (if available); • an actual or expected significant deterioration in the operating results of the debtor; and • existing or forecast changes in the technological, market, economic or legal environment that have a significant adverse effect on the debtor’s ability to meet its obligation to the Group. (ii) Definition of default For internal credit risk management, the Group considers an event of default occurs when information developed internally or obtained from external sources indicates that the debtor is unlikely to pay its creditors, including the Group, in full (without taking into account any collaterals held by the Group). (iii) Credit-impaired financial assets A financial asset is credit-impaired when one or more events that have a detrimental impact on the estimated future cash flows of that financial asset have occurred. Evidence that a financial asset is credit-impaired includes observable data about the following events: • significant financial difficulty of the issuer or the borrower; • a breach of contract, such as a default or past due event; • the lender(s) of the borrower, for economic or contractual reasons relating to the borrower’s financial difficulty, having granted to the borrower a concession(s) that the lender(s) would not otherwise consider; • it is becoming probable that the borrower will enter bankruptcy or other financial reorganization; or • the disappearance of an active market for that financial asset because of financial difficulties. (iv) Write-off The Group writes off a financial asset when there is information indicating that the counterparty is in severe financial difficulty and there is no realistic prospect of recovery, for example, when the counterparty has been placed under liquidation or has entered into bankruptcy proceedings. A write-off (v) Measurement and recognition of ECL The measurement of ECL is a function of the probability of default, loss given default (i.e. the magnitude of the loss if there is a default) and the exposure at default. The assessment of the probability of default and loss given default is based on the historical data adjusted by forward-looking information. Generally, the ECL is the difference between all contractual cash flows that are due to the Group in accordance with the contract and all the cash flows that the Group expects to receive, discounted at the effective interest rate determined at initial recognition. Where ECL is measured on a collective basis or cater for cases where evidence at the individual instrument level may not be available, the financial instruments are grouped on the following basis: • Nature of financial instruments (i.e. the Group’s accounts receivable and financial assets included in prepayments and other current assets are each assessed as a separate group); • Past-due • Nature, size and industry of debtors; and • External credit ratings where available. The grouping is regularly reviewed by management to ensure the constituents of each group continue to share similar credit risk characteristics. The Group recognizes an impairment gain or loss in profit or loss for all financial instruments measured at amortized cost by adjusting their carrying amount, with the exception of accounts receivable and other receivables where the corresponding adjustment is recognized through a loss allowance account. Classification and subsequent measurement of financial assets (prior to January 1, 2018) The Group’s financial assets are classified into the following specified categories: AFS financial assets and loans and receivables. The classification depends on the nature and purpose of the financial assets and is determined at the time of initial recognition. All regular way purchases or sales of the financial assets are recognized and derecognized on a settlement date basis. Regular way purchases or sales are purchases or sales of financial assets that require delivery of assets within the time frame established by regulation or convention in the marketplace. (i) AFS financial assets Investments in available-for-sale listed equity securities are carried at fair value with any change in fair value being recognized in other comprehensive income and accumulated separately in equity. For investments in available-for-sale listed equity securities, a significant or prolonged decline in the fair value of that investment below its cost is considered to be objective evidence of impairment. When these investments are derecognized or impaired, the cumulative gain or loss previously recognized in other comprehensive income is recognized in profit or loss. Investments in unlisted equity securities that do not have a quoted market price in an active market and whose fair value cannot be reliably measured are stated at cost less impairment losses (see below). (ii) Loans and receivables Accounts receivable and other receivables are initially recognized at fair value and thereafter stated at amortized cost using the effective interest method, less allowance for doubtful debts (see below) unless the effect of discounting would be immaterial, in which case they are stated at cost less allowance for doubtful debts. Impairment of financial assets (prior to January 1, 2018) Accounts and other receivables and investments in equity securities carried at cost are reviewed at the end of each reporting period to determine whether there is objective evidence of impairment. Objective evidence of impairment includes observable data that comes to the attention of the Group about one or more of the following loss events: • significant financial difficulty of the debtor or issuer; • a breach of contract, such as a default or delinquency in interest or principal payments; • it becoming probable that the debtor will enter bankruptcy or other financial reorganization; and • significant changes in the technological, market, economic or legal environment that have an adverse effect on the debtor/issuer. The impairment loss for accounts and other receivables is measured as the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the estimated future cash flows, discounted at the financial asset’s original effective interest rate where the effect of discounting is material, and is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. The impairment loss for investments in equity securities carried at cost is measured as the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the estimated future cash flows, discounted at the current market rate of return for a similar financial asset where the effect of discounting is material, and is recognized as an expense in profit or loss. Impairment losses for accounts and other receivables are reversed through profit or loss if in a subsequent period the amount of the impairment losses decreases. Impairment losses for equity securities carried at cost are not reversed. Derecognition of financial assets The Group derecognizes a financial asset only when the contractual rights to the cash flows from the asset expire, or when it transfers the financial asset and substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership of the asset to another entity. On derecognition of a financial asset measured at amortized cost, the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the sum of the consideration received and receivable is recognized in profit or loss. On derecognition of an investment in equity instrument which the Group has elected on initial recognition / initial application to measure at FVTOCI upon application of IFRS 9, the cumulative gain or loss previously accumulated in other reserves is not reclassified to profit or loss, but is transferred to retained earnings. On derecognition of an AFS financial asset, the cumulative gain or loss previously accumulated in other reserves is reclassified to profit or loss. Financial liabilities and equity Classification as debt or equity Debt and equity instruments are classified as either financial liabilities or as equity in accordance with the substance of the contractual arrangements and the definitions of a financial liability and an equity instrument. Equity instruments An equity instrument is any contract that evidences a residual interest in the assets of an entity after deducting all of its liabilities. Equity instruments issued by the Group are recognized at the proceeds received, net of direct issue costs. Financial liabilities All financial liabilities are subsequently measured at amortized cost using the effective interest method. Financial liabilities including short-term and long-term debt, accounts payable, and financial liabilities included in accrued expenses and other payables are subsequently measured at amortized cost, using the effective interest method. Offsetting a financial asset and a financial liability A financial asset and a financial liability are offset and the net amount presented in the statement of financial position when, and only when, the Group currently has a legally enforceable right to set off the recognized amounts; and intends either to settle on a net basis, or to realize the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Cash and cash equivalents	(k) Cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents comprise cash at bank and in hand and time deposits with original maturities of three months or less when purchased. Cash equivalents are stated at cost, which approximates fair value. None of the Group’s cash and cash equivalents is restricted as to withdrawal.
Revenue from contract with customers (upon application of IFRS 15)	(l) Revenue from contract with customers (upon application of IFRS 15) Effective January 1, 2018, the Group applied IFRS 15 and the related Amendments. IFRS 15 superseded IAS 18, “Revenue” “Construction Contracts” “Revenue” Under IFRS 15, the Group recognizes revenue when (or as) a performance obligation is satisfied. i.e. when “control” of the goods or services underlying the particular performance obligation is transferred to the customer. A performance obligation represents a good or service (or a bundle of goods or services) that is distinct or a series of distinct goods or services that are substantially the same. Control is transferred over time and revenue is recognized over time by reference to the progress towards complete satisfaction of the relevant performance obligation if one of the following criteria is met: • the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefits provided by the Group’s performance as the Group performs; • the Group’s performance creates and enhances an asset that the customer controls as the Groups performs; or • the Group’s performance does not create an asset with an alternative use to the Group and the Group has an enforceable right to payment for performance completed to date. As such, revenues from contracts with customers of telecommunications services, including voice, Internet, information and application and telecommunications network resource and equipment services, resale of mobile services (MVNO) and repair and maintenance of equipment are generally recognized over time during which the services are provided to customers. Otherwise, revenue is recognized at a point in time when the customer obtains control of the distinct good or service. As such, revenues from sales of equipment are recognize at a point in time when the equipment is delivered to the customers and when the control over the equipment have been transferred to the customers. A contract asset represents the Group’s right to consideration in exchange for goods or services that the Group has transferred to a customer but the right is conditioned on the Group’s future performance. A contract asset is transferred to accounts receivable when the right becomes unconditional. A contract asset is assessed for impairment in accordance with IFRS 9. In contrast, a receivable represents the Group’s unconditional right to consideration, i.e. only the passage of time is required before payment of that consideration is due. A contract liability represents the Group’s obligation to transfer goods or services to a customer for which the Group has received consideration (or an amount of consideration is due) from the customer. When the Group receives an advance payment before the performance obligation is satisfied, this will give rise to a contract liability, until the operating revenues recognized on the relevant contract exceed the amount of the advance payment. A contract asset and a contract liability relating to the same contract are accounted for and presented on a net basis. Contracts with multiple performance obligations (including allocation of transaction price) For contracts that contain more than one performance obligations, such as the Group’s direct sales of promotional packages bundling terminal equipment, e.g. mobile handsets, and the telecommunications services, the Group allocates the transaction price to each performance obligation on a relative stand-alone selling price basis. The stand-alone selling price of the distinct good or service underlying each performance obligation is determined at contract inception. It represents the price at which the Group would sell a promised good or service separately to a customer. If a stand-alone selling price is not directly observable, the Group estimates it using appropriate techniques such that the transaction price ultimately allocated to any performance obligation reflects the amount of consideration to which the Group expects to be entitled in exchange for transferring the promised goods or services to the customer. Over time revenue recognition: measurement of progress towards complete satisfaction of a performance obligation The progress towards complete satisfaction of a performance obligation is generally measured based on output method, which is to recognize revenue on the basis of direct measurements of the value of the goods or services transferred to the customer to date relative to the remaining goods or services promised under the contract. Principal versus agent When another party is involved in providing goods or services to a customer, the Group determines whether the nature of its promise is a performance obligation to provide the specified goods or services itself (i.e. the Group is a principal) or to arrange for those goods or services to be provided by the other party (i.e. the Group is an agent). The Group is a principal if it controls the specified good or service before that good or service is transferred to a customer. The Group is an agent if its performance obligation is to arrange for the provision of the specified good or service by another party. In this case, the Group does not control the specified good or service provided by another party before that good or service is transferred to the customer. When the Group acts as an agent, it recognizes revenue in the amount of any fee or commission to which it expects to be entitled in exchange for arranging for the specified goods or services to be provided by the other party. Consideration payable to a customer Consideration payable to a customer includes cash amounts that the Group pays, or expects to pay, to the customer, and also includes credit or other items that can be applied against amounts owed to the Group. The Group accounted for such consideration payable to a customer as a reduction of the transaction price and, therefore, of revenue unless the payment to the customer is in exchange for a distinct good or service that the customer transfers to the Group and the fair value of the good or service received from the customer can be reasonably estimated. Certain subsidies payable to third party agent incurred by the Group in respect of customer contracts, which will be ultimately enjoyed by end customers, and other subsidies incurred by the Group directly payable to its customers, are qualified as consideration payable to a customer and accounted for as a reduction of operating revenues. Incremental costs of obtaining a contract Incremental costs of obtaining a contract are those costs that the Group incurs to obtain a contract with a customer that it would not have incurred if the contract had not been obtained. Certain commissions incurred by the Group paid or payable to third party agents, whose selling activities resulted in customers entering into sale agreements for the Group’s telecommunications service, are qualified as incremental costs. The Group recognizes such costs as an asset, included in other assets, if it expects to recover these costs. The asset so recognized is subsequently amortized to profit or loss on a systematic basis that is consistent with the transfer to the customer of the goods or services to which the assets relate. The Group applies the practical expedient of expensing all incremental costs to obtain a contract if these costs would otherwise have been fully amortized to profit or loss within one year. Costs to fulfil a contract When the Group incurs costs to fulfil a contract, it first assesses whether these costs qualify for recognition as an asset in terms of other relevant standards, failing which it recognizes an asset for these costs only if they meet all of the following criteria: • the costs relate directly to a contract or to an anticipated contract that the Group can specifically identify; • the costs generate or enhance resources of the Group that will be used in satisfying (or in continuing to satisfy) performance obligations in the future; and • the costs are expected to be recovered. The asset so recognized is subsequently amortized to profit or loss on a systematic basis that is consistent with the transfer to the customer of the goods or services to which the assets relate. The asset is subject to impairment review.
Revenue recognition	(m) Revenue recognition (prior to January 1, 2018) Before the application of IFRS 15, the revenue recognition methods of the Group are as follows: • Revenues from telecommunications services, including voice, Internet, information and application and telecommunications network resource and equipment services, resale of mobile services (MVNO) and repair and maintenance of equipment are recognized over time during which the services are provided to customers. Revenue from information and application services in which no third party service providers are involved, such as caller display and Internet data center services, are presented on a gross basis. Revenues from all other information and application services are presented on either gross or net basis based on the assessment of each individual arrangement with third parties. The following factors indicate that the Group is acting as principal in the arrangements with third parties: - The Group is primarily responsible for providing the applications or services desired by customers, and takes responsibility for fulfillment of ordered applications or services, including the acceptability of the applications or services ordered or purchased by customers; - The Group takes title of the inventory of the applications before they are ordered by customers; - The Group has risks and rewards of ownership, such as risks of loss for collection from customers after applications or services are provided to customers; - The Group has latitude in establishing selling prices with customers; - The Group can modify the applications or perform part of the services; - The Group has discretion in selecting suppliers used to fulfill an order; and - The Group determines the nature, type, characteristics, or specifications of the applications or services. If majority of the indicators of risks and responsibilities exist in the arrangements with third parties, the Group is acting as a principal and have exposure to the significant risks and rewards associated with the rendering of services or the sale of applications, and revenues for these services are recognized on a gross basis. If majority of the indicators of risks and responsibilities do not exist in the arrangements with third parties, the Group is acting as an agent, and revenues for these services are recognized on a net basis. • Sale of equipment is recognized on delivery of the equipment to customers and when the significant risks and rewards of ownership and title have been transferred to the customers. The Group offers promotional packages, which involve the bundled sales of terminal equipment, i.e. mobile handsets, and telecommunications services, to customers. The total contract consideration of a promotional package is allocated to revenues generated from the provision of telecommunications services and the sales of terminal equipment using the residual method. Under the residual method, the total contract consideration of the arrangement is allocated as follows: the undelivered component, which is the provision of telecommunications services, is measured at fair value, and the remainder of the contract consideration is allocated to the delivered component, which is the sales of terminal equipment. The Group recognizes revenues generated from the delivery and sales of the terminal equipment when the title of the terminal equipment is passed to the customers whereas revenues generated from the provision of telecommunications services are recognized based upon the actual usage of such services.
Leases	(n) Leases Definition of a lease A contract is, or contains, a lease if the contract conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. The Group assesses whether a contract is or contains a lease based on the definition under IFRS 16 at inception or modification date. Such contract will not be reassessed unless the terms and conditions of the contract are subsequently changed. The Group as a lessee As a practical expedient, leases with similar characteristics are accounted on a portfolio basis when the Group reasonably expects that the effects on the financial statements would not differ materially from individual leases within the portfolio. Allocation of consideration to components of a contract For a contract that contains a lease component and one or more additional lease or non-lease non-lease Short-term leases and leases of low-value The Group applies the short-term lease recognition exemption to leases of buildings, equipment and other assets that have a lease term of 12 months or less from the commencement date and do not contain a purchase option. It also applies the recognition exemption for lease of low-value low-value Right-of-use The cost of right-of-use • the amount of the initial measurement of the lease liability; • any lease payments made at or before the commencement date, less any lease incentives received; • any initial direct costs incurred by the lessee; and • an estimate of costs to be incurred by the lessee in dismantling and removing the underlying assets, restoring the site on which it is located or restoring the underlying asset to the condition required by the terms and conditions of the lease. Right-of-use Right-of-use right-of-use The Group presents right-of-use Lease liabilities At the commencement date of a lease, the Group recognizes and measures the lease liability at the present value of lease payments that are unpaid at that date. In calculating the present value of lease payments, the Group uses the incremental borrowing rate at the lease commencement date if the interest rate implicit in the lease is not readily determinable. The lease payments include: • fixed payments (including in-substance • variable lease payments that depend on an index or a rate; • the exercise price of a purchase option reasonably certain to be exercised by the Group; and • payments of penalties for terminating a lease, if the lease term reflects the Group exercising the option to terminate the lease. Variable lease payments that depend on an index or a rate are initially measured using the index or rate as of the commencement date. Variable lease payments that do not depend on an index or a rate are not included in the measurement of lease liabilities and right-of-use After the commencement date, lease liabilities are adjusted by interest accretion and lease payments. The Group remeasures lease liabilities (and makes a corresponding adjustment to the related right-of-use • the lease term has changed or there is a change in the assessment of exercise of a purchase option, in which case the related lease liability is remeasured by discounting the revised lease payments using a revised discount rate at the date of assessment. • the lease payments change due to changes in market rental rates following a market rent review, in which cases the related lease liability is remeasured by discounting the revised lease payments using the initial discount rate. Lease modifications The Group accounts for a lease modification as a separate lease if: • the modification increases the scope of the lease by adding the right to use one or more underlying assets; and • the consideration for the leases increases by an amount commensurate with the stand-alone price for the increase in scope and any appropriate adjustments to that stand-alone price to reflect the circumstances of the particular contract. For a lease modification that is not accounted for as a separate lease, the Group remeasures the lease liability based on the lease term of the modified lease by discounting the revised lease payments using a revised discount rate at the effective date of the modification. The Group accounts for the remeasurement of lease liabilities by making corresponding adjustments to the relevant right-of-use non-lease non-lease The Group as lessee (prior to January 1, 2019) Assets acquired under finance leases are initially recorded at amounts equivalent to the lower of the fair value of the leased assets at the inception of the lease or the present value of the minimum lease payments (computed using the rate of interest implicit in the lease). The net present value of the future minimum lease payments is recorded correspondingly as a finance lease obligation. Where the Group has the right to use the assets under operating leases, payments made under the leases are charged to profit or loss in equal installments over the accounting periods covered by the lease term, except where an alternative basis is more representative of the pattern of benefits to be derived from the leased asset. Lease incentives received are recognized in profit or loss as an integral part of the aggregate net lease payments made. Contingent rentals are charged to profit or loss in the accounting period in which they are incurred. Lease prepayments represent land use rights paid. Land use rights are initially carried at cost or deemed cost and then charged to profit or loss on a straight-line basis over the respective periods of the rights which range from 20 years to 70 years. The Group as a lessor Classification and measurement of leases Leases for which the Group is a lessor are classified as finance or operating leases. Whenever the terms of the lease transfer substantially all the risks and rewards incidental to ownership of an underlying asset to the lessee, the contract is classified as a finance lease. All other leases are classified as operating leases. Amounts due from lessees under finance leases are recognized as receivables at commencement date at amounts equal to net investments in the leases, measured using the interest rate implicit in the respective leases. Initial direct costs (other than those incurred by manufacturer or dealer lessors) are included in the initial measurement of the net investments in the leases. Interest income is allocated to accounting periods so as to reflect a constant periodic rate of return on the Group’s net investment outstanding in respect of the leases. Rental income from operating leases is recognized in profit or loss on a straight-line basis over the term of the relevant lease. Initial direct costs incurred in negotiating and arranging an operating lease are added to the carrying amount of the leased asset, and such costs are recognized as an expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Upon application of IFRS 16 on January 1, 2019, variable lease payments for operating leases that depend on an index or a rate are estimated and included in the total lease payments to be recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Variable lease payments that do not depend on an index or a rate are recognized as income when they arise. The Group as a lessor Allocation of consideration to components of a contract When a contract includes both leases and non-lease non-lease Non-lease Refundable rental deposits Refundable rental deposits received are accounted under IFRS 9, “Financial Instruments” Sublease When the Group is an intermediate lessor, it accounts for the head lease and the sublease as two separate contracts. The sub-lease right-of-use Lease modification The Group accounts for a modification to an operating lease as a new lease from the effective date of the modification, considering any prepaid or accrued lease payments relating to the original lease as part of the lease payments for the new lease.
Net finance costs	(o) Net finance costs Net finance costs comprise interest income on bank deposits, interest costs on borrowings, interest expense on lease liabilities and foreign exchange gains and losses. Interest income from bank deposits is recognized as it accrues using the effective interest method. Interest costs incurred in connection with borrowings are calculated using the effective interest method and are expensed as incurred, except to the extent that they are capitalized as being directly attributable to the construction of an asset which necessarily takes a substantial period of time to get ready for its intended use.
Research and development expense	(p) Research and development expense Research and development expenditure is expensed as incurred. For the years ended December 31, 2017, 2018 and 2019, research and development related personnel expenses amounted to RMB1,134, RMB1,327 and RMB1,950, and research and development related depreciation amounted to RMB108, RMB110 and RMB141, respectively. In addition, other research and development expense for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2018 and 2019 was RMB1,088, RMB1,341 and RMB2,105, respectively.
Employee benefits	(q) Employee benefits The Group’s contributions to defined contribution retirement plans administered by the PRC government and defined contribution retirement plans administered by independent external parties are recognized in profit or loss as incurred. Further information is set out in Note 39. Compensation expense in respect of the share appreciation rights granted is accrued as a charge to the profit or loss over the applicable vesting period based on the fair value of the share appreciation rights. The liability of the accrued compensation expense is re-measured
Government grants	(r) Government grants The Group’s government grants are mainly related to the government loans with below-market rate of interest. Government grants shall only be recognized until there is reasonable assurance that: (i) the Group will comply with all the conditions attaching to them; and (ii) the grants will be received. Government grants that compensate expenses incurred are recognized in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income in the same periods in which the expenses are incurred. Government grants relating to assets are recognized in deferred revenue and are credited to the consolidated statement of comprehensive income on a straight-line basis over the expected lives of the related assets.
Provisions and contingent liabilities	(s) Provisions and contingent liabilities A provision is recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position when the Group has a legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event, and it is probable that an outflow of economic benefits will be required to settle the obligation and a reliable estimate can be made of the amount of the obligation. Where the time value of money is material, provisions are stated at the present value of the expenditure expected to settle the obligation. Where it is not probable that an outflow of economic benefits will be required, or the amount cannot be estimated reliably, the obligation is disclosed as a contingent liability, unless the probability of outflow of economic benefits is remote. Possible obligations, whose existence will only be confirmed by the occurrence or non-occurrence
Value-added tax	(t) Value-added tax (“VAT”) Under current PRC tax rules and regulations, output VAT rate for basic telecommunications services (including voice communication, lease or sale of network resources) is 9% since April 1, 2019 since April 1, 2019 since April 1, 2019 Output VAT is excluded from operating revenues while input VAT, which is incurred as a result of the Company’s receipt of services and purchases of telecommunications equipment and materials, is excluded from operating expenses or the original cost of equipment purchased and can be netted against the output VAT, arriving at the net amount of VAT recoverable or payable. As the VAT obligations are borne by branches and subsidiaries of the Company, input and output VAT are set off at branches and subsidiaries levels, and the net amount of VAT recoverable or payable of branches and subsidiaries are not offset at the consolidation level. Such net amount of VAT recoverable or payable is recorded in the line item of prepayments and other current assets and accrued expenses and other payables, respectively on the face of consolidated statements of financial position.
Income tax	(u) Income tax Income tax for the year comprises current tax and movement in deferred tax assets and liabilities. Income tax is recognized in profit or loss except to the extent that it relates to items recognized in other comprehensive income, or directly in equity, in which case the relevant amounts of tax are recognized in other comprehensive income or directly in equity respectively. Current tax is the expected tax payable on the taxable income for the year, using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the end of the reporting period, and any adjustment to tax payable in respect of previous years. Deferred tax is provided using the balance sheet liability method, providing for all temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and their tax bases. The amount of deferred tax is calculated on the basis of the enacted or substantively enacted tax rates that are expected to apply in the period when the asset is realized or the liability is settled. The effect on deferred tax of any changes in tax rates is charged or credited to profit or loss, except for the effect of a change in tax rate on the carrying amount of deferred tax assets and liabilities which were previously recognized in other comprehensive income, in such case the effect of a change in tax rate is also recognized in other comprehensive income. A deferred tax asset is recognized only to the extent that it is probable that future taxable income will be available against which the asset can be utilized. Deferred tax assets are reduced to the extent that it is no longer probable that the related tax benefit will be realized. Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognized for all taxable temporary differences. Deferred tax liabilities are recognized for taxable temporary differences associated with investments in subsidiaries and associates, except where the Group is able to control the reversal of the temporary difference and it is probable that the temporary difference will not reverse in the foreseeable future. For the purposes of measuring deferred tax for leasing transactions in which the Group recogni z right-of-use right-of-use The tax deductions of the Group’s leasing transactions are attributable to the lease liabilities. The Group applies IAS 12, “Income Taxes” right-of-use right-of-use
Dividends	(v) Dividends Dividends are recognized as a liability in the period in which they are declared.
Related parties	(w) Related parties (a) A person, or a close member of that person’s family, is related to the Group if that person: (i) has control or joint control over the Group; (ii) has significant influence over the Group; or (iii) is a member of the key management personnel of the Group or the Group’s parent. (b) An entity is related to the Group if any of the following conditions applies: (i) The entity and the Group are members of the same group (which means that each parent, subsidiary and fellow subsidiary is related to the others); (ii) The entity is an associate or joint venture of the Group (or an associate or joint venture of a member of a group of which the Group is a member); or the Group is an associate or joint venture of the entity (or an associate or joint venture of a member of a group of which the entity is a member); (iii) The entity and the Group are joint ventures of the same third party; (iv) The entity is a joint venture of a third entity and the Group is an associate of the third entity; or the Group is a joint venture of a third entity and the entity is an associate of the third entity; (v) The entity is controlled or jointly controlled by a person identified in (a); (vi) A person identified in (a)(i) has significant influence over the entity or is a member of the key management personnel of the entity (or of a parent of the entity). Close members of the family of a person are those family members who may be expected to influence, or be influenced by, that person in their dealings with the entity.
Segmental reporting	(x) Segmental reporting An operating segment is a component of an entity that engages in business activities from which revenues are earned and expenses are incurred, and is identified on the basis of the internal financial reports that are regularly reviewed by the chief operating decision maker in order to allocate resource and assess performance of the segment. For the periods presented, management has determined that the Group has one operating segment as the Group is only engaged in the integrated telecommunications business. The Group’s assets located outside mainland China and operating revenues derived from activities outside mainland China are less than 10% of the Group’s assets and operating revenues, respectively. No geographical area information has been presented as such amount is immaterial. No single external customer accounts for 10% or more of the Group’s operating revenues.

Principal Activities, Organiz_2

Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Gain on Disposal of Subsidiary	Gain on disposal of a subsidiary: 2017 RMB Consideration for the disposal 251 Net assets disposed of (143 ) Gain on disposal 108
Summary of Net Cash Inflow from Disposal of Subsidiary	Net cash inflow from disposal of a subsidiary: 2017 RMB Consideration received in cash and cash equivalents 249 Less: Cash and cash equivalents disposed of (65 ) Net cash inflow from disposal of a subsidiary 184

Application of New and Amendm_2

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of detailed information about lessee operating lease using incremental borrowing rate	At January 1, 2019 RMB Operating lease commitments disclosed as of December 31, 2018 65,805 Less: Recognition exemption—short-term leases (684 ) Recognition exemption— low-value (85 ) Variable lease payments not depending on an index or a rate (12,265 ) Reassessment on definition of a lease and change in allocation basis between lease and non-lease (2,852 ) 49,919 Less: Total future interest expenses (4,271 ) Lease liabilities relating to operating leases recognized upon application of IFRS 16 45,648 Add: Finance lease obligations recognized as of 216 Lease liabilities as of January 1, 2019 45,864 Analyzed as Current 10,260 Non-current 35,604
Carrying amount of right of assets	The carrying amount of right-of-use Note Right-of-use assets RMB Right-of-use 43,956 Reclassified from lease prepayments (a ) 21,568 65,524
Summary of Impact of Implementation of IFRS 15 on Consolidated Statement of Financial Position	The following adjustments were made to the amounts recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position at January 1, 2019. Line items that were not affected by the changes have not been included. Carrying amounts reported at Carrying amounts Note December 31, 2018 Adjustments January 1, 2019 RMB RMB RMB Non-current Right-of-use — 65,524 65,524 Lease prepayments (a ) 21,568 (21,568 ) — Interests in associates 38,051 (263 ) 37,788 Deferred tax assets 6,544 676 7,220 Other assets 4,840 (746 ) 4,094 Current assets Prepayments and other current assets 23,619 (518 ) 23,101 Current liabilities Accounts payable 107,887 (100 ) 107,787 Current portion of lease liabilities — 10,260 10,260 Current portion of finance lease obligations 101 (101 ) — Non-current Lease liabilities — 35,604 35,604 Finance lease obligations 115 (115 ) — Equity Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company 343,069 (2,440 ) 340,629 Non-controlling 1,030 (3 ) 1,027

Significant Accounting Polici_3

Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Estimated Useful Life for Depreciation Purposes of Property, Plant and Equipment	Depreciation is provided to write off the cost of each asset over its estimated useful life on a straight-line basis, after taking into account its estimated residual value, as follows: Depreciable lives Buildings and improvements 8 to 30 years Telecommunications network plant and equipment 5 to 10 years Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment 5 to 10 years

Cash and Cash Equivalents (Tabl

Cash and Cash Equivalents (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Cash and Cash Equivalents	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cash at bank and in hand 14,937 20,006 Time deposits with original maturity within three months 1,729 785 16,666 20,791

Accounts Receivable, Net (Table

Accounts Receivable, Net (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Accounts Receivable, Net	Accounts receivable, net, are analyzed as follows: December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 23,308 24,438 China Telecom Group (i ) 1,327 1,188 China Tower (See definition in Note 14) 10 5 Other telecommunications operators in the PRC 510 550 25,155 26,181 Less: Allowance for credit losses (4,680 ) (4,692 ) 20,475 21,489 Note: (i) China Telecommunications Corporation together with its subsidiaries other than the Group are referred to as “China Telecom Group”.
Changes in Allowance for Doubtful Debts	The following table summarizes the changes in allowance for doubtful debts in 2017: 2017 RMB At beginning of year 3,402 Impairment losses for doubtful debts 1,962 Accounts receivable written off (1,522 ) At end of year 3,842
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Accounts Receivable, Net	Aging analysis of accounts receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers based on the billing dates is as follows: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 8,376 7,545 1 to 3 months 2,117 1,777 4 to 12 months 1,932 1,822 More than 12 months 943 1,002 13,368 12,146 Less: Allowance for credit losses (2,898 ) (2,803 ) 10,470 9,343
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Accounts Receivable, Net	Aging analysis of accounts receivable from other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers based on dates of rendering of services is as follows: December 31 , 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 3,318 4,701 1 to 3 months 2,300 2,964 4 to 12 months 3,994 3,768 More than 12 months 2,175 2,602 11,787 14,035 Less: Allowance for credit losses (1,782 ) (1,889 ) 10,005 12,146

Contract Assets (Tables)

Contract Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Contract Assets	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 454 447 China Telecom Group 24 27 478 474

Inventories (Tables)

Inventories (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Inventories	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Materials and supplies 1,012 577 Goods for resale 3,820 2,303 4,832 2,880

Prepayments and Other Current_2

Prepayments and Other Current Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Prepayments and Other Current Assets	December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Amounts due from China Telecom Group 1,035 1,233 Amounts due from China Tower (See definition in Note 14) 293 192 Amounts due from other telecommunications operators in the PRC 333 352 Prepayments in connection with construction work and equipment purchases 2,752 3,352 Prepaid expenses and deposits 3,628 2,993 Value-added tax recoverable 8,618 8,803 Other receivables (i ) 6,960 5,294 23,619 22,219 Note: (i) Other receivables as of December 31, 2018 include the unpaid remaining consideration of the contribution from non-controlling

Property, Plant and Equipment_2

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Property, Plant and Equipment, Net	Buildings and ments Telecom- network plant and Furniture, other Total RMB RMB RMB RMB Cost/Deemed cost: Balance at January 1, 2018 101,332 842,473 30,585 974,390 Additions 712 512 306 1,530 Transferred from construction in progress 1,454 71,704 1,721 74,879 Retirement and disposal (860 ) (59,822 ) (1,636 ) (62,318 ) Reclassification (97 ) (485 ) 582 — Balance at December 31, 2018 102,541 854,382 31,558 988,481 Additions 554 274 277 1,105 Transferred from construction in progress 2,060 74,157 1,644 77,861 Retirement and disposal (751 ) (62,560 ) (2,419 ) (65,730 ) Reclassification (39 ) (536 ) 575 — Balance at December 31, 2019 104,365 865,717 31,635 1,001,717 Accumulated depreciation and impairment: Balance at January 1, 2018 (54,706 ) (491,066 ) (22,361 ) (568,133 ) Depreciation charge for the year (4,370 ) (63,878 ) (2,135 ) (70,383 ) Written back on retirement and disposal 750 55,519 1,561 57,830 Reclassification 26 439 (465 ) — Balance at December 31, 2018 (58,300 ) (498,986 ) (23,400 ) (580,686 ) Depreciation charge for the year (4,185 ) (64,672 ) (2,101 ) (70,958 ) Written back on retirement and disposal 681 56,943 2,311 59,935 Reclassification 19 358 (377 ) — Balance at December 31, 2019 (61,785 ) (506,357 ) (23,567 ) (591,709 ) Net book value at December 31, 2019 42,580 359,360 8,068 410,008 Net book value at December 31, 2018 44,241 355,396 8,158 407,795

Construction in Progress (Table

Construction in Progress (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Construction in Progress	RMB Balance at January 1, 2018 73,106 Additions 74,457 Transferred to property, plant and equipment (74,879 ) Transferred to intangible assets (6,040 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 66,644 Additions 76,870 Transferred to property, plant and equipment (77,861 ) Transferred to intangible assets (6,447 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 59,206

Right-of-Use Assets (Table)

Right-of-Use Assets (Table)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [abstract]
Summary of Detailed Information About Operating Lease Right Of Use Assets	Leasehold s Buildings Telecommunications Equipment Others Total RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB As of January 1, 2019 Carrying amount 21,568 7,079 27,354 9,311 212 65,524 As of December 31, 2019 Carrying amount 20,952 8,289 23,740 8,361 207 61,549 For the year ended December 31, 2019 Depreciation charge 732 2,968 6,966 1,612 65 12,343

Goodwill (Tables)

Goodwill (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Goodwill	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cost: Goodwill arising from acquisition of CDMA business 29,922 29,923

Intangible Assets (Tables)

Intangible Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Intangible Assets	Software RMB Cost: Balance at January 1, 2018 34,550 Additions 269 Transferred from construction in progress 6,040 Disposals (3,545 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 37,314 Additions 624 Transferred from construction in progress 6,447 Disposals (591 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 43,794 Accumulated amortization and impairment: Balance at January 1, 2018 (22,159 ) Amortization charge for the year (4,366 ) Written back on disposals 3,372 Balance at December 31, 2018 (23,153 ) Amortization charge for the year (4,844 ) Written back on disposals 552 Balance at December 31, 2019 (27,445 ) Net book value at December 31, 2019 16,349 Net book value at December 31, 2018 14,161

Interests in Associates (Tables

Interests in Associates (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Interests in Associates	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Cost of investment in associates 36,933 37,173 Share of post-acquisition changes in net assets 1,118 2,019 38,051 39,192 Fair value of listed investments 46,797 55,601
Details of Principal Associates Accounted for under Equity Method	The Group’s interests in associates are accounted for under the equity method. Details of the Group’s principal associates are as follows: Name of company Attributable Principal activities China Tower Corporation Limited (Note (i)) 20.5 % Construction, maintenance and operation of telecommunications towers as well as ancillary facilities Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (Note (ii)) 24.0 % Provision of information technology consultancy services Notes: (i) China Tower Corporation Limited (“China Tower”) is established and operated in the PRC, and listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on August 8, 2018. Income from investments in associates for the year ended December 31, 2018 includes: (a) a one-off (ii) Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (“Shanghai Info-investment”) is established and operated in the PRC and is not traded on any stock exchange.
Summarized Financial Information of Associates and Reconciled to Carrying Amounts of Interests in Associates in Consolidated Financial Statements	Aggregate financial information of the Group’s associates that are not individually material is disclosed below: 2018 2019 RMB RMB The Group’s share of profit of these associates 14 85 The Group’s share of total comprehensive income of these associates 14 85 December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Aggregate carrying amount of interests in these associates in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 863 1,175
Shanghai Info Investment Incorporation [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summarized Financial Information of Associates and Reconciled to Carrying Amounts of Interests in Associates in Consolidated Financial Statements	Summarized financial information of the Group’s principal associates and reconciled to the carrying amounts of interests in associates in the Group’s consolidated financial statements are disclosed below: China Tower December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current assets 31,799 40,995 Non-current 283,565 297,072 Current liabilities 114,759 128,364 Non-current 20,103 27,142 2018 2019 RMB RMB Operating revenues 71,819 76,428 Profit for the year 2,650 5,221 Other comprehensive income for the year — — Total comprehensive income for the year 2,650 5,221 Dividend received from the associate — 81 Reconcile to the Group’s interests in the associate: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Net assets of the associate 180,502 182,561 Non-controlling — (2 ) The Group’s effective interest in the associate 20.5 % 20.5 % The Group’s share of net assets of the associate 37,003 37,425 Adjustment for the remaining balance of the deferred gain from the Tower Assets Disposal (1,013 ) (865 ) Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 35,990 36,560 Shanghai Info - December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Current assets 7,181 4,292 Non-current 8,592 5,203 Current liabilities 6,615 2,494 Non-current 1,985 787 2018 2019 RMB RMB Operating revenues 4,337 3,214 Profit for the year 586 1,158 Other comprehensive income for the year (29 ) (7 ) Total comprehensive income for the year 557 1,151 Dividend received from the associate 9 9 Reconcile to the Group’s interests in the associate: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Net assets of the associate 7,173 6,214 Non-controlling (2,180 ) (144 ) The Group’s effective interest in the associate 24.0 % 24.0 % The Group’s share of net assets of the associate 1,198 1,457 Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group 1,198 1,457

Equity Instruments at Fair Va_2

Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income	December 31, Notes 2018 2019 RMB RMB Equity securities listed in the mainland China (i ) 638 1,228 Unlisted equity securities (ii ) 214 230 852 1,458 Notes: (i) The above listed equity instruments represent ordinary shares of entities listed in the mainland China. These investments are not held for trading, instead, they are held for long-term strategic purposes. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that recognizing short-term fluctuations in these investments’ fair value in profit or loss would not be consistent with the Group’s strategy of holding these investments for long-term purposes and realizing their performance potential in the long run. (ii) The above unlisted equity securities represent the Group’s equity interests in various private entities established in the PRC. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that the Group will hold these investments for long-term strategic purposes.

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabi_2

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Components of Deferred Tax Assets and Deferred Tax Liabilities	The components of deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements are as follows: Assets Liabilities Net Balance 201 8 201 9 201 8 201 9 201 8 201 9 RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses 1,925 1,953 — — 1,925 1,953 Property, plant and equipment, and others 4,580 4,862 (13,022 ) (18,831 ) (8,442 ) (13,969 ) Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities — 744 — — — 744 Deferred revenues and installation costs 39 18 (29 ) (13 ) 10 5 Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income — — (87 ) (234 ) (87 ) (234 ) Deferred tax assets/(liabilities) 6,544 7,577 (13,138 ) (19,078 ) (6,594 ) (11,501 )
Movements in Deferred Tax Assets and Deferred Tax Liabilities	Balance at January 1, 2017 Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2017 RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for doubtful debts 1,531 95 1,626 Property, plant and equipment, and others (1,006 ) (3,001 ) (4,007 ) Deferred revenues and installation costs 35 (16 ) 19 Available-for-sale (269 ) 100 (169 ) Net deferred tax assets/(liabilities) 291 (2,822 ) (2,531 ) Balance at December 31, 2017 Changes in Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2018 RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses 1,626 203 96 1,925 Property, plant and equipment, and others (4,007 ) (1,066 ) (3,369 ) (8,442 ) Deferred revenues and installation costs 19 — (9 ) 10 Available-for-sale (169 ) 169 — — Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income — (169 ) 82 (87 ) Net deferred tax liabilities (2,531 ) (863 ) (3,200 ) (6,594 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 Change in Recognized in consolidated Balance at December 31, 2019 RMB RMB RMB RMB Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for cre dit los ses 1,925 — 28 1,953 Property, plant and equipment, and others (8,442 ) — (5,527 ) (13,969 ) Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities — 676 68 744 Deferred revenues and installation costs 10 — (5 ) 5 Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income (87 ) — (147 ) (234 ) Net deferred tax liabilities (6,594 ) 676 (5,583 ) (11,501 )

Other Assets (Tables)

Other Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Other Assets	December 31, Note 2018 2019 RMB RMB Contract costs (i ) 1,287 988 Installation fees 124 56 Other long-term prepaid expenses 3,429 3,643 4,840 4,687 Note: (i) Contract costs capitalized as of December 31, 2018 and 2019 mainly relate to the incremental sales commissions paid to third party agents whose selling activities resulted in subscribers entering into telecommunications service agreements with the Group. The amount of capitalized costs recognized in profit or loss during the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2019 was RMB1,744 and RMB1,367, respectively. There was no impairment in relation to the opening balance of capitalized costs or the costs capitalized during the year.

Short-term and Long-term Debt (

Short-term and Long-term Debt (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement [LineItems]
Aggregate Maturities of Long-term Debt	The aggregate maturities of the Group’s long-term debt subsequent to December 31, 2019 are as follows: RMB 2020 4,444 2021 1,078 2022 26,032 2023 965 2024 940 Thereafter 3,036 36,495
Short-term debt [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Debt	Short-term debt comprises: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Loans from banks—unsecured 12,881 15,831 Super short-term commercial papers — unsecured 27,992 19,995 Other loans — unsecured 80 80 Loans from China Telecom Group — unsecured 8,584 6,621 Total short-term debt 49,537 42,527
Long-term debt and payable [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Debt	Long-term debt comprises: December 31, Interest rates and final maturity 2018 2019 RMB RMB Bank loans — unsecured Renminbi denominated (Note (i)) Interest rates ranging from 1.08% to 1.20% per annum with maturities through 2036 8,455 7,738 US Dollars denominated Interest rates ranging from 1.25% to 2.00% per annum with maturities through 2028 336 288 Euro denominated Interest rate of 2.30% per annum with maturities through 2032 199 173 8,990 8,199 Other loans — unsecured Renminbi denominated 1 1 Medium -term note — un secured (Note(ii)) — 4,995 Loans from China Telecom Group — unsecured Renminbi denominated (Note ( i 37,000 23,300 Total long-term debt 45,991 36,495 Less: Current portion (1,139 ) (4,444 ) Non-current 44,852 32,051 Notes: (i) The Group obtained long-term RMB denominated government loans with below-market interest rates ranging from 1.08% to 1.20% per annum through banks (the “Low-interest Low-interest Low-interest (ii) On January 22, 2019, the Group issued three-year, RMB3,000 denominated medium-term note with annual interest rate of 3.42% per annum, and incurred issuing costs of RMB3. The medium-term note is unsecured and is repayable on January 21, 2022. On March 19, 2019, the Group issued three-year, RMB2,000 denominated medium-term note with annual interest rate of 3.41% per annum and incurred issuing costs of RMB3. The medium-term note is unsecured and is repayable on March 18, 2022. (iii) The Group obtained long-term RMB denominated loans with the interest rate of 3.8% per annum from China Telecommunications Corporation on December 25, 2017, which are repayable within 3 to 5 years. The Group partially repaid these loans amounting to RMB3,000 and RMB13,700, respectively, in 2018 and 2019.

Accounts Payable (Tables)

Accounts Payable (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Accounts Payable	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 83,418 78,123 China Telecom Group 20,983 19,531 China Tower 2,850 4,312 Other telecommunications operators in the PRC 636 650 107,887 102,616

Accrued Expenses and Other Pa_2

Accrued Expenses and Other Payables (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Accrued Expenses and Other Payables	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Amounts due to China Telecom Group 2,171 6,069 Amounts due to China Tower 1,246 1,261 Amounts due to other telecommunications operators in the PRC 46 32 Accrued expenses 33,811 34,628 Value-added tax payable 484 564 Customer deposits and receipts in advance 5,739 5,962 43,497 48,516

Contract Liabilities (Tables)

Contract Liabilities (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Contract Liabilities	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Third parties 55,638 54,225 China Telecom Group 145 162 China Tower — 1 55,783 54,388

Lease Liabilities (Tables)

Lease Liabilities (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [abstract]
Summary of maturity for opearting lease payments

Deferred Revenues (Tables)

Deferred Revenues (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Deferred Revenues	2018 2019 RMB RMB Balance at beginning of the year 2,274 1,829 Reductions for the year: Amortization of installation fees (138 ) (90 ) Amortization of government grants (307 ) (284 ) Balance at end of year 1,829 1,455 Representing: Current portion 375 358 Non-current portion 1,454 1,097 1,829 1,455

Share Capital (Tables)

Share Capital (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Share Capital	December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Registered, issued and fully paid 67,054,958,321 ordinary domestic shares of RMB1.00 each 67,055 67,055 13,877,410,000 overseas listed H shares of RMB1.00 each 13,877 13,877 80,932 80,932

Reserves (Tables)

Reserves (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Reserves	Capital Share premium Surplus reserves General Other reserves Exchange Retained earnings Total RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB (Note (i)) (Note (iii)) (Note (v)) (Note (ii)) Balance as of January 1, 2017 17,160 10,746 72,611 — 711 (622 ) 133,839 234,445 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — (293 ) (259 ) 18,617 18,065 Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group (Note 1) (80 ) — — — — — (7 ) (87 ) Acquisition of non-controlling interests 46 — — — — — — 46 Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (7,530 ) (7,530 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,686 — — — (1,686 ) — Others — — — — (4 ) — — (4 ) Balance as of December 31, 2017 17,126 10,746 74,297 — 414 (881 ) 143,233 244,935 Changes in accounting policies — — 302 — — — 2,673 2,975 Balance as of January 1, 2018 17,126 10,746 74,599 — 414 (881 ) 145,906 247,910 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — (249 ) 154 21,210 21,115 Disposal of investments in equity instruments at fair value — — — — (5 ) — 5 — Contribution from non-controlling 680 — — — — — — 680 Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (7,568 ) (7,568 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,875 — — — (1,875 ) — Balance as of December 31, 2018 17,806 10,746 76,474 — 160 (727 ) 157,678 262,137 Change in accounting policy (Note 2) — — (243 ) — — — (2,197 ) (2,440 ) Balance as of January 1, 2019, as restated 17,806 10,746 76,231 — 160 (727 ) 155,481 259,697 Total comprehensive income for the year — — — — 455 102 20,517 21,074 Acquisition of non-controlling interests 3 — — — — — — 3 Share of an associate’s other changes in reserves (305 ) — — — — — — (305 ) Dividends (Note 32) — — — — — — (8,891 ) (8,891 ) Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve (Note (iii)) — — 1,812 — — — (1,812 ) — Appropriations to general risk reserve of Finance Company (Note (v)) — — — 23 — — (23 ) — Balance as of December 31, 2019 17,504 10,746 78,043 23 615 (625 ) 165,272 271,578 Notes: (i) Capital reserve of the Group mainly represents the sum of (a) the difference between the carrying amount of the Company’s net assets and the par value of the Company’s shares issued upon its formation; (b) the difference between the consideration paid by the Group for the entities acquired, other than the Fifth Acquired Group, from China Telecommunications Corporation, which were accounted for as equity transactions as disclosed in Note 1, and the historical carrying amount of the net assets of these acquired entities; and (c) the difference between the consideration paid by the Group for the acquisition of non-controlling non-controlling The difference between the consideration paid by the Group and the historical carrying amount of the net assets of the Fifth Acquisition was recorded as a deduction of retained earnings. Capital reserve of the Company represents the difference between the carrying amount of the Company’s net assets and the par value of the Company’s shares issued upon its formation. (ii) Other reserves of the Group and the Company represent primarily the change in the fair value of investment instruments at FVTOCI and the deferred tax liabilities recognized due to the change in fair value of those (iii) The surplus reserves consist of statutory surplus reserve and discretionary surplus reserve. According to the Company’s Articles of Association, the Company is required to transfer 10% of its net profit, as determined in accordance with the lower of the amount determined under the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and the amount determined under IFRSs, to the statutory surplus reserve until such reserve balance reaches 50% of the registered capital. The transfer to this reserve must be made before distribution of any dividend to shareholders. For the year ended December 31, 2019, the net profit of the Company determined in accordance with the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and IFRS are the same. For the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company transferred RMB1,812 , being 10% of the year’s net profit, to this reserve. For the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company transferred R M The Company did not transfer any discretionary surplus reserve for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2019. As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the amount of discretionary surplus reserve was RMB46,079. The statutory and discretionary surplus reserves are non-distributable (iv) According to the Company’s Articles of Association, the amount of retained earnings available for distribution to shareholders of the Company is the lower of the amount of the Company’s retained earnings determined in accordance with the PRC Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises and the amount determined in accordance with IFRSs. As of December 31, 2018, January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019, the amount of retained earnings available for distribution was RMB133,076, RMB130,892 and RMB138,312 respectively, being the amount determined in accordance with IFRSs. Final dividend of approximately RMB9,126 in respect of the financial year 2019 proposed after the end of the reporting period has not been recognized as a liability in the consolidated financial statements at the end of the reporting period (Note 32). (v) Pursuant to “Requirements on Impairment Allowance for Financial Institutions” (Caijin [2012] No. 20) issued by the Ministry of Finance of the PRC effective on July 1, 2012 (the “Requirements”), Finance Company establishe d

Operating Revenues (Tables)

Operating Revenues (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Disclosure of Disaggregation of Revenues	Disaggregation of revenues Notes 2018 2019 RMB RMB Type of goods or services Revenue from contracts with customers Voice (i ) 50,811 45,146 Internet (ii ) 190,871 197,244 Information and application services (iii ) 83,478 87,623 Telecommunications network resource and equipment services (iv ) 20,211 21,978 Sales of goods and others (v ) 27,450 17,906 Subtotal 372,821 369,897 Revenue from other sources (vi ) 4,303 5,837 Total operating revenues 377,124 375,734 Timing of revenue recognition A point in time 24,496 14,591 Over time 352,628 361,143 Total operating revenues 377,124 375,734 Notes: (i) Represent the aggregate amount of voice usage fees, installation fees and interconnections fees charged to customers for the provision of telephony services. (ii) Represent amounts charge d (iii) Represent primarily the aggregate amount of fees charged to customers for the provision of Internet data center service, system integration services, e-Surfing (iv) Represent amounts charged to other domestic telecommunications operators and enterprise customers for the provision of telecommunications network resource and equipment services. (v) Represent primarily revenue from sales, and repair and maintenance of telecommunications equipment as well as the resale of mobile services (MVNO). (vi) Represent primarily revenue from property rental and other revenues.
Components of Operating Revenues	The components of the Group’s operating revenues are as follows: 2017 RMB Voice 61,678 Internet 172,554 Information and application services 73,044 Telecommunications network resource and equipment services 19,125 Others 39,828 366,229

Network Operations and Suppor_2

Network Operations and Support Expenses (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Network Operations and Support Expenses	Year ended December 31, Note 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Operating and maintenance 55,360 64,056 65,087 Utility 12,522 13,477 13,818 Network resources usage and related fee (i ) 26,926 29,434 20,976 Others 9,161 9,095 9,918 103,969 116,062 109,799 Note: (i) Network resources usage and related fee for the year ended December 31, 2019 includes the variable lease payments and fee for non-lease low-value non-lease

Personnel Expenses (Tables)

Personnel Expenses (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Personnel Expenses by Functions	Personnel expenses are attributable to the following functions: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Network operations and support 38,574 40,388 42,214 Selling, general and administrative 17,469 19,348 21,353 56,043 59,736 63,567

Other Operating Expenses (Table

Other Operating Expenses (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Other Operating Expenses	Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Interconnection charges (i ) 12,223 12,878 12,683 Cost of goods sold (ii ) 31,712 23,185 13,413 Donations 23 20 1 Others (iii ) 1,654 1,614 1,695 45,612 37,697 27,792 Notes: (i) Interconnection charges represent amounts incurred for the use of other domestic and foreign telecommunications operators’ networks for delivery of voice and data traffic that originate from the Group’s telecommunications networks. (ii) Cost of goods sold primarily represents cost of telecommunications equipment sold. (iii) Others mainly include tax and surcharges other than value-added tax and income tax.

Net Finance Costs (Tables)

Net Finance Costs (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Net Finance Costs	Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Interest expense on short-term and long-term debts 3,913 3,278 2,623 Interest expense on lease liabilities — — 1,607 Less: Interest expense capitalized* (327 ) (185 ) (140 ) Net interest expense 3,586 3,093 4,090 Interest income (429 ) (306 ) (492 ) Foreign exchange losses 664 423 680 Foreign exchange gains (530 ) (502 ) (639 ) 3,291 2,708 3,639 * 3.9% - 4.9 % 3.8%-4.4 % 3.5%-4.4 %

Income Tax (Tables)

Income Tax (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Income Tax in Profit or Loss	Income tax in the profit or loss comprises: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Provision for PRC income tax 3,147 3,408 781 Provision for income tax of other tax jurisdictions 123 120 105 Deferred taxation 2,922 3,282 5,436 6,192 6,810 6,322
Reconciliation of Expected Tax Expense with Actual Tax Expense	A reconciliation of the expected tax expense with the actual tax expense is as follows: Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Earnings before income tax 24,953 28,148 27,034 Expected income tax expense at statutory tax rate of 25% (i ) 6,238 7,037 6,759 Differential tax rate on PRC subsidiaries’ and branches’ income (i ) (108 ) (291 ) (315 ) Differential tax rate on other subsidiaries’ income (ii ) (82 ) (58 ) (129 ) Non-deductible (iii ) 380 537 979 Non-taxable (iv ) (112 ) (319 ) (460 ) Others (v ) (124 ) (96 ) (512 ) Actual income tax expense 6,192 6,810 6,322 Notes: (i) Except for certain subsidiaries and branches which are mainly taxed at a preferential rate of 15%, the provision for mainland China income tax is based on a statutory rate of 25% of the assessable income of the Company, its mainland China subsidiaries and branches as determined in accordance with the relevant income tax rules and regulations of the PRC. (ii) Income tax provisions of the Company’s subsidiaries in Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions of the PRC, and in other countries are based on the subsidiaries’ assessable income and income tax rates applicable in the respective tax jurisdictions which range from 8% to 35%. (iii) Amounts represent miscellaneous expenses in excess of statutory deductible limits for tax purposes. (iv) Amounts represent miscellaneous income which are not subject to income tax. (v) Amounts primarily represent settlement of tax filing differences of prior year annual tax return and other tax benefits such as additional tax deduction on research and development expenses.

Commitments and Contingencies (

Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Future Minimum Lease Payments under Non-cancellable Operating Leases	As of December 31, 2018, the Group’s future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases are as follows: RMB 2019 15,658 2020 14,466 2021 13,440 2022 12,682 2023 3,461 Thereafter 6,098 Total minimum lease payments 65,805
Capital Commitments	As of December 31, 2019, the Group had capital commitments as follows: RMB Contracted for but not provided - property 1,810 - telecommunications network plant and equipment 19,131 20,941

Financial Instruments (Tables)

Financial Instruments (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement [LineItems]
Carrying Amounts and Fair Value of Long-term Debt	As of December 31, 2018 and 2019, the carrying amounts and fair value of the Group’s long-term debt was as follows: December 31, 2018 December 31, 2019 Carrying amount Fair value Carrying amount Fair value RMB RMB RMB RMB Long-term debt 45,991 44,968 36,495 35,780
Summary of Movements in Loss Allowance Account in Respect of Accounts Receivables	Movement in the loss allowance account in respect of accounts receivable during the year is as follows: 2018 2019 RMB RMB At beginning of year 4,761 4,680 Impairment losses for ECL 2,008 1,653 Amounts written off (2,089 ) (1,641 ) At end of year 4,680 4,692
Remaining Contractual Maturities of Financial Liabilities Based on Contractual Undiscounted Cash Flows and Earliest Date of Repayment Required	The following table sets out the remaining contractual maturities at the end of the reporting period of the Group’s financial liabilities and lease liabilities, which are based on contractual undiscounted cash flows (including interest payments computed using contractual rates or, if floating, based on prevailing rates at the end of the reporting period) and the earliest date the Group would be required to repay: 2018 Carrying Total Within 1 More than 1 More than 2 More RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Short-term debt 49,537 51,091 51,091 — — — Long-term debt 45,991 52,625 2,602 19,604 25,061 5,358 Accounts payable 107,887 107,887 107,887 — — — Accrued expenses and other payables 43,497 43,497 43,497 — — — Finance lease obligations 216 241 112 40 82 7 247,218 255,341 205,189 19,644 25,143 5,365 2019 Carrying Total Within 1 More than 1 More than 2 More RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB RMB Short-term debt 42,527 43,697 43,697 — — — Long-term debt 36,495 40,791 4,625 1,184 30,824 4,158 Accounts payable 102,616 102,616 102,616 — — — Accrued expenses and other payables 48,516 48,516 48,516 — — — Lease liabilities 42,146 45,535 12,846 11,794 17,266 3,629 272,300 281,155 212,300 12,978 48,090 7,787
Interest Rate Profile of Debt	The following table sets out the interest rate profile of the Group’s debt at the end of the reporting period: 2018 2019 Effective Effective interest rate interest rate % RMB % RMB Fixed rate debt: Short-term debt 3.2 49,347 2.5 29,022 Long-term debt 3.3 45,991 3.1 36,495 95,338 65,517 Variable rate debt: Short-term debt 4.2 190 3.8 13,505 190 13,505 Total debt 95,528 79,022 Fixed rate debt as a percentage of total debt 99.8 % 82.9 %
Accounts receivable [member] | Telephone and Internet subscribers [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Accounts Receivable from Telephone and Internet Subscribers	Accounts receivable from telephone and Internet subscribers: December 31, 2018 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 2 % 8,376 158 1 to 3 months 20 % 2,117 420 4 to 6 months 60 % 839 502 7 to 12 months 80 % 1,093 875 Over 12 months 100 % 943 943 13,368 2,898 December 31, 2019 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB Current, within 1 month 2 % 7,545 141 1 to 3 months 20 % 1,777 349 4 to 6 months 60 % 739 444 7 to 12 months 80 % 1,083 867 Over 12 months 100 % 1,002 1,002 12,146 2,803
Accounts receivable and contract assets [member] | Enterprise customers [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Summary of Accounts Receivables From Enterprise Customers and Contract Assets	Accounts receivable and contract assets from enterprise customers: December 31, 2018 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB 1 to 6 months 2 % 4,478 109 7 to 12 months 20 % 800 157 1 to 2 years 60 % 479 290 2 to 3 years 90 % 225 202 Over 3 years 100 % 298 298 6,280 1,056 December 31, 2019 Expected Gross carrying Loss loss rate amount allowance % RMB RMB 1 to 6 months 2 % 5,452 102 7 to 12 months 20 % 1,428 239 1 to 2 years 60 % 621 353 2 to 3 years 90 % 258 224 Over 3 years 100 % 371 364 8,130 1,282

Reconciliation of Liabilities_2

Reconciliation of Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Text block [abstract]
Summary of Changes in Group's Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities	The table below details changes in the Group’s liabilities arising from financing activities, including both cash and non-cash Short-term debt Long-term debt Lease Dividend payable Deposits Other payables in Total RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions RMB millions (Note (i)) Balance as at January 1, 2018 54,558 49,742 77 — — 206 104,583 Financing cash flows (5,021 ) (4,073 ) (73 ) (7,745 ) — (226 ) (17,138 ) New finance leases — — 200 — — — 200 Interest expenses — 304 12 — — — 316 Foreign exchange loss — 18 — — — — 18 Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests — — — — — 20 20 Distribution to non-controlling interests — — — 177 — — 177 Dividends declared — — — 7,568 — — 7,568 Balance as at December 31, 2018 49,537 45,991 216 — — — 95,744 Change in accounting policy — — 45,648 — — — 45,648 Balance as at January 1, 2019 49,537 45,991 45,864 — — — 141,392 Financing cash flows (7,010 ) (9,782 ) (10,699 ) (9,072 ) 4,098 (8 ) (32,473 ) New leases — — 8,856 — — — 8,856 Lease modifications — — (589 ) — — — (589 ) Transferred to accounts payables — — (2,900 ) — — — (2,900 ) Interest expenses — 284 1,607 — — — 1,891 Foreign exchange loss — 2 7 — — — 9 Acquisition of non-controlling interests — — — — — 8 8 Distribution to non-controlling interests — — — 181 — — 181 Dividends declared — — — 8,891 — — 8,891 Balance as at December 31, 2019 42,527 36,495 42,146 — 4,098 — 125,266 Notes: (i) As of December 31, 2019, the balance of deposits with Finance Company amounting to RMB4,098 (December 31, 2018: nil) were included in amounts due to China Telecom Group in accrued expenses and other payables (Note 20). (ii) For the year ended December 31, 2019, other than the net financing cash outflows totalling RMB32,473 as presented above: E-surfing Pay, a subsidiary of the Company, received RMB90 as part of the total consideration amounting to RMB945 in respect of contribution from non-controlling interests (Note 20); Finance Company, a subsidiary of the Company, received RMB1,500 in respect of contribution from non-controlling interests (Note 25), and placed statutory reserve deposits amounting to RMB405 at the People’s Bank of China which is included in the balance of short-term bank deposits as of

Related Party Transactions (Tab

Related Party Transactions (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement [LineItems]
Key Management Personnel Compensation	Key management personnel compensation of the Group is summarized as follows: Year ended December 31, 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB thousands thousands thousands Short-term employee benefits 7,804 7,942 9,604 Post-employment benefits 816 799 1,199 8,620 8,741 10,803
China Telecom Group [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Principal Transactions and Amounts Due From/To Related Parties	The principal transactions with China Telecom Group which were carried out in the ordinary course of business are as follows. Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Construction and engineering services (i) 18,672 16,396 14,014 Receiving ancillary services (ii) 16,072 16,744 18,571 Interconnection revenues (iii) 48 80 97 Interconnection charges (iii) 193 204 183 Receiving community services (iv) 3,028 3,296 3,464 Net transaction amount of centralized services (v) 727 519 133 Property lease income (vi) 53 48 57 Property lease related expenses (vii) 654 713 577 Addition to right-of-use assets (vii) — — 284 Interest expense on lease liabilities (vii) — — 11 Provision of IT services (viii) 642 531 464 Receiving IT services (viii) 1,812 1,895 2,175 Purchases of telecommunications equipment and materials (ix) 4,248 3,760 3,538 Sales of telecommunications equipment and materials (ix) 3,291 2,760 1,444 Internet applications channel services (x) 344 298 108 Interest on amounts due to and loans from China Telecom Group (xi) 2,720 2,099 1,485 Others (xii) 190 186 189 Net deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company (xiii) — — 4,098 Interest expense on the deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company (xiii) — — 7 Notes: (i) Represent construction and engineering as well as design and supervisory services provided by China Telecom Group. (ii) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group in respect of ancillary services such as repairs and maintenance of telecommunications equipment and facilities and certain customer services. (iii) Represent amounts received and receivable from/paid and payable to China Telecom Group for interconnection of local and domestic long distance calls. (iv) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group in respect of cultural, educational, health care and other community services. (v) Represent net amount shared between the Company and China Telecom Group for costs associated with centralized services. The amount represents amounts received or receivable for the net amount of centralized services. (vi) Represent amounts of property lease fee received and receivable from China Telecom Group for leasing of properties. (vii) Represent amounts in relation to the leasing of properties from China Telecom Group. Property lease related expenses for the year ended 31 December 2019 include the fee for short-term leases, leases of low-value non-lease (viii) Represent IT services provided to and received from China Telecom Group. (ix) Represent the amount of telecommunications equipment and materials purchased from/sold to China Telecom Group and commission paid and payable for procurement services provided by China Telecom Group. (x) Represent amounts received and receivable from China Telecom Group in respect of Internet applications channel services, including the provision of telecommunications channel and applications support platform and billing and deduction services, etc. (xi) Represent interest paid and payable to China Telecom Group with respect to the amount due to China Telecommunications Corporation and loans from China Telecom Group (Note 18). (xii) Represent amounts paid and payable to China Telecom Group primarily for usage of CDMA mobile telecommunications network (“CDMA network”) facilities located in Xizang Autonomous Region, certain inter-provincial transmission optic fibers within its service regions and land use rights. (xiii) Represent amounts related to financial services provided by Finance Company to China Telecom Group, including lending services, deposit services and other financial services. Amounts due from/to China Telecom Group are summarized as follows: December 31, 2018 2019 RMB RMB Accounts receivable 1,327 1,188 Contract assets 24 27 Prepayments and other current assets 1,035 1,233 Total amounts due from China Telecom Group 2,386 2,448 Accounts payable 20,983 19,531 Accrued expenses and other payables 2,171 6,069 Contract liabilities 145 162 Lease liabilities — 389 Short-term debt 8,584 6,621 Long-term debt 37,000 23,300 Total amounts due to China Telecom Group 68,883 56,072
China Tower [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Principal Transactions and Amounts Due From/To Related Parties	The principal transactions with China Tower are as follows: Year ended December 31, Notes 2017 2018 2019 RMB RMB RMB Tower assets lease related expenses (i ) 15,389 16,063 10,543 Additions of right-of-use assets (i ) — — 3,735 Interest expense on lease liabilities (i ) — — 938 Provis ion of IT services (ii ) 49 32 31 Notes: (i) Represent amounts in relation to the lease of tower assets. Tower assets lease related expenses for the year ended 31 December 2019 includes the variable lease payments not depending on an index or a rate and fee for non-lease (ii) Represent IT and other ancillary services provided to China Tower. Amounts due from/to China Tower are summarized as follows: 2018 2019 RMB RMB Accounts receivable 10 5 Prepayments and other current assets 293 192 Total amounts due from China Tower 303 197 Accounts payable 2,850 4,312 Accrued expenses and other payables 1,246 1,261 Contract liabilities — 1 Lease liabilities — 24,474 Total amounts due to China Tower 4,096 30,048

Principal Subsidiaries (Tables)

Principal Subsidiaries (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Investments accounted for using equity method [abstract]
Details of Subsidiaries which Principally Affected Results, Assets and Liabilities of the Group	Details of the Company’s subsidiaries which principally affected the results, assets and liabilities of the Group as of December 31, 2019 are as follows: Name of company Type of legal entity Date of incorporation Place of incorporation and Registered /issued capital (in RMB million unless Principal activities China Telecom System Integration Co., Limited Limited Company September 13, 2001 PRC 542 Provision of system integration and consulting services China Telecom Global Limited Limited Company February 25, 2000 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the PRC HK$168 million Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom (Americas) Corporation Limited Company November 22, 2001 The United States of America US$43 million Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom Best Tone Information Service Co., Limited Limited Company August 15, 2007 PRC 350 Provision of Best Tone information services China Telecom (Macau) Company Limited Limited Company October 15, 2004 Macau Special Administrative Region of the PRC MOP60 million Provision of telecommunications services Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited Limited Company July 1, 2005 PRC 500 Sales of telecommunications terminals China Telecom (Singapore) Pte. Limited Limited Company October 5, 2006 Singapore S$1,000,001 Provision of international value-added network services E-surfing Limited Company March 3, 2011 PRC 635 Provision of Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited Limited Company May 5, 1984 PRC 91 Provision of telecommunications services China Telecom (Australia) Pty Ltd Limited Company January 10, 2011 Australia AUD1 million Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom Korea Co.,Ltd Limited Company May 16, 2012 South Korea KRW500 million Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom (Malaysia) SDN BHD Limited Company June 26, 2012 Malaysia MYR3,723,500 Provision of international value-added network services China Telecom Information Technology (Vietnam) Co., Ltd Limited Company July 9, 2012 Vietnam VND10,500 million Provision of international value-added network services iMUSIC Culture & Technology Co., Ltd. Limited Company June 9, 2013 PRC 250 Provision of music production and related information services China Telecom (Europe) Limited Limited Company March 2, 2006 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland GBP16.15 million Provision of telecommunications services Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd. Limited Company August 19, 2013 PRC 11 Provision of instant messenger service Tianyi Capital Holding Co., Ltd. Limited Company November 30, 2017 PRC 5,000 Capital Investment and provision of consulting services China Telecom Leasing Corporation Limited. Limited Company November 30, 2018 PRC 5,000 Provision of finance lease service China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd . (“Finance Company”) Limited Company January 8, 2019 PRC 5,000 Provision of capital and financial management services

Principal Activities, Organiz_3

Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ / shares in Units, ¥ in Millions, shares in Millions

Nov. 16, 2017

Oct. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2018

Dec. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2019

Dec. 31, 2013

Apr. 30, 2012

Dec. 01, 2011

Jun. 30, 2008

Jun. 30, 2007

Jun. 30, 2004

Dec. 31, 2003

Sep. 10, 2002

Chengdu E-store Technology Co., Ltd [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest disposed

100.00%

Consideration for the disposal

¥ 251

cash received from disposal of a subsidiary

¥ 249

¥ 2

¥ 184

Anhui Telecom Company Limited, Fujian Telecom Company Limited, Jiangxi Telecom Company Limited, Guangxi Telecom Company Limited, Chongqing Telecom Company Limited and Sichuan Telecom Company Limited [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 46,000

Hubei Telecom Company Limited, Hunan Telecom Company Limited, Hainan Telecom Company Limited, Guizhou Telecom Company Limited, Yunnan Telecom Company Limited, Shaanxi Telecom Company Limited, Gansu Telecom Company Limited, Qinghai Telecom Company Limited, Ningxia Telecom Company Limited and Xinjiang Telecom Company Limited [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 27,800

China Telecom Group Beijing Corporation [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 5,557

Digital Trunking Business from Besttone Holding Co., Ltd., a Subsidiary of China Telecommunications Corporation [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 48

China Telecom (Europe) Limited [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 278

E-commerce business and video media business from China Telecommunications Corporation and its subsidiaries [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 61

China Telecom System Integration Co., Ltd., China Telecom Global Limited and China Telecom (Americas) Corporation [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 1,408

Satcom Business [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 70

Shaanxi Zhonghe Hengtai Insurance Agent Limited [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Percentage of equity interest acquired

100.00%

Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests

¥ 17

Domestic shares [member]

Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]

Number of shares issued on the date of incorporation

68,317

Par value per share of shares issued on the date of incorporation

¥ 1

¥ 1

¥ 1

Principal Activities, Organiz_4

Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation - Summary of Gain on Disposal of Subsidiary (Detail) - Chengdu E-store Technology Co., Ltd [member] ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017CNY (¥)
Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]
Consideration for the disposal	¥ 251
Net assets disposed of	(143)
Gain on disposal	¥ 108

Principal Activities, Organiz_5

Principal Activities, Organization and Basis of Presentation - Summary of Net Cash Inflow from Disposal of Subsidiary (Detail) - Chengdu E-store Technology Co., Ltd [member] - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Nov. 16, 2017	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of general information about financial statements (line items]
Consideration received in cash and cash equivalents			¥ 249
Less: Cash and cash equivalents disposed of			(65)
Net cash inflow from disposal of a subsidiary	¥ 249	¥ 2	¥ 184

Application of New and Amendm_3

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation - Summary Of Detailed Information About Lessee Operating Lease Using Incremental Borrowing Rate (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Schedule Of Detailed Information About Lessee Operating Lease Using Incremental Borrowing Rate [Line Items]
Operating lease commitments disclosed as of December 31, 2018	¥ 65,805
Less: Recognition exemption—short-term leases	(684)
Recognition exemption—low-value assets	(85)
Variable lease payments not depending on an index or a rate	(12,265)
Reassessment on definition of a lease and change in allocation basis between lease and non-lease components	(2,852)
Total future lease payments	49,919
Less: Total future interest expenses	(4,271)
Lease liabilities relating to operating leases recognized upon application of IFRS 16	45,648
Add: Finance lease obligations recognized as of December 31, 2018	216
Lease liabilities as of January 1, 2019		¥ 42,146	¥ 216
Current lease liabilities	10,260	11,569
Non-current	35,604	¥ 30,577
New IFRS [Member]
Schedule Of Detailed Information About Lessee Operating Lease Using Incremental Borrowing Rate [Line Items]
Lease liabilities as of January 1, 2019	¥ 45,864

Application of New and Amendm_4

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation - Disclouser Of LineItems In Statement Of Financial Position Which Include Right of use Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Reclassified from lease prepayments			¥ 21,568
Total	¥ 61,549
Right-of-use assets [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Right-of-use assets relating to operating leases recognized upon application of IFRS 16		¥ 43,956
Reclassified from lease prepayments		21,568
Total		¥ 65,524

Application of New and Amendm_5

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation - Disclouser Of LineItems In Statement Of Financial Position Which Include Right of use Assets (Paranthetical) (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Lease prepayments		¥ 21,568
Interests in associates	¥ (39,192)	¥ (38,051)
Changes in accounting policies [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Interests in associates	¥ (263)

Application of New and Amendm_6

Application of New and Amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs") and Interpretation - Summary of Impact of Implementation of IFRS 16 on Consolidated Statement of Financial Position (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Non-current assets
Right-of-use assets	¥ 61,549
Lease prepayments			¥ 21,568
Interests in associates	39,192		38,051
Deferred tax assets	7,577		6,544
Other assets	4,687		4,840
Current assets
Prepayments and other current assets	22,219		23,619
Current liabilities
Accounts payable	102,616		107,887
Current portion of lease liabilities	11,569	¥ 10,260
Current portion of finance lease obligations			101
Non-current liabilities
Lease liabilities	42,146		216
Finance lease obligations/lease liabilities	30,577		115
Equity
Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company	352,510		343,069
Non-controlling interests	¥ 2,530		¥ 1,030
Carrying amounts under IFRS 16 at January 1, 2019 [member]
Non-current assets
Right-of-use assets		65,524
Lease prepayments		0
Interests in associates		37,788
Deferred tax assets		7,220
Other assets		4,094
Current assets
Prepayments and other current assets		23,101
Current liabilities
Accounts payable		107,787
Current portion of lease liabilities		10,260
Current portion of finance lease obligations		0
Non-current liabilities
Lease liabilities		35,604
Finance lease obligations/lease liabilities		0
Equity
Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company		340,629
Non-controlling interests		1,027
Adjustments on January 1, 2019 with the application of IFRS 16 [member]
Non-current assets
Right-of-use assets		65,524
Lease prepayments		(21,568)
Interests in associates		(263)
Deferred tax assets		676
Other assets		(746)
Current assets
Prepayments and other current assets		(518)
Current liabilities
Accounts payable		(100)
Current portion of lease liabilities		10,260
Current portion of finance lease obligations		(101)
Non-current liabilities
Lease liabilities		35,604
Finance lease obligations/lease liabilities		(115)
Equity
Total equity attributable to equity holders of the Company		(2,440)
Non-controlling interests		¥ (3)

Significant Accounting Polici_4

Significant Accounting Policies - Additional Information (Detail) ¥ in Millions	Apr. 01, 2019	May 01, 2018	Apr. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)Segments	Dec. 31, 2018CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2017CNY (¥)	Jan. 01, 2018CNY (¥)
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Estimated useful lives of software				3 to 5 years
Reduced the opening reserves upon application of IFRS 9							¥ 716
Increased the opening reserves upon application of IFRS 15							¥ 3,691
Number of operating segments | Segments				1
Basic telecommunications services (including voice communication, lease or sale of network resources) [member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Output value added tax rate	9.00%	11.00%	10.00%
Value-added telecommunications services (including Internet access services, short and multimedia messaging services, transmission and application service of electronic data and information) [member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Output value added tax rate	6.00%
Sales of telecommunications terminals and equipment [member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Output value added tax rate	13.00%	17.00%	16.00%
Personnel expenses [Member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Research and development expense				¥ 1,950	¥ 1,327	¥ 1,134
Depreciation [Member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Research and development expense				141	110	108
Other [Member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Research and development expense				¥ 2,105	¥ 1,341	¥ 1,088
Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Input value added tax rate	3.00%	3.00%	3.00%
Top of range [member]
Disclosure of significant accounting policies [line items]
Input value added tax rate	13.00%	17.00%	16.00%

Significant Accounting Polici_5

Significant Accounting Policies - Estimated Useful Life for Depreciation Purposes of Property, Plant and Equipment (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Buildings and improvements [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Estimated useful or depreciable lives of property, plant and equipment	8 to 30 years
Telecommunications network plant and equipment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Estimated useful or depreciable lives of property, plant and equipment	5 to 10 years
Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Estimated useful or depreciable lives of property, plant and equipment	5 to 10 years

Cash and Cash Equivalents - Sum

Cash and Cash Equivalents - Summary of Cash and Cash Equivalents (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Cash and cash equivalents [abstract]
Cash at bank and in hand	¥ 20,006	¥ 14,937
Time deposits with original maturity within three months	785	1,729
Cash and cash equivalents	¥ 20,791	¥ 16,666	¥ 19,410	¥ 24,617

Accounts Receivable, Net - Summ

Accounts Receivable, Net - Summary of Accounts Receivable, Net (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ 21,489	¥ 20,475
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	26,181	25,155
Cost/Deemed cost [member] | China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	1,188	1,327
Cost/Deemed cost [member] | China Tower [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	5	10
Cost/Deemed cost [member] | Third parties [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	24,438	23,308
Cost/Deemed cost [member] | Other telecommunications operators in the PRC [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	550	510
Allowance for credit losses [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ (4,692)	¥ (4,680)

Accounts Receivable, Net - Addi

Accounts Receivable, Net - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Jan. 01, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ 21,489	¥ 20,475
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable from contracts with customers			¥ 25,342
Accounts receivable	26,181	25,155
Past due 90 days [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ 1,936	¥ 2,503

Accounts Receivable, Net - Agei

Accounts Receivable, Net - Ageing Analysis of Accounts Receivable from Telephone and Internet Subscribers (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ 21,489	¥ 20,475
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	26,181	25,155
Allowance for credit losses [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	(4,692)	(4,680)
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	9,343	10,470
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	12,146	13,368
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | Current, within 1 month [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	7,545	8,376
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | 1 to 3 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	1,777	2,117
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | 4 to 12 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	1,822	1,932
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | More than 12 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	1,002	943
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Allowance for credit losses [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ (2,803)	¥ (2,898)

Accounts Receivable, Net - Ag_2

Accounts Receivable, Net - Ageing Analysis of Accounts Receivable from Other Telecommunications Operators and Enterprise Customers (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ 21,489	¥ 20,475
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	26,181	25,155
Allowance for credit losses [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	(4,692)	(4,680)
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	12,146	10,005
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	14,035	11,787
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | Current, within 1 month [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	4,701	3,318
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | 1 to 3 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	2,964	2,300
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | 4 to 12 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	3,768	3,994
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member] | More than 12 months [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	2,602	2,175
Other telecommunications operators and enterprise customers [member] | Allowance for credit losses [member]
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
Accounts receivable	¥ (1,889)	¥ (1,782)

Accounts Receivable, Net - Chan

Accounts Receivable, Net - Changes in Allowance for Doubtful Debts (Detail) - Allowance for credit losses [member] ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017CNY (¥)
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
At beginning of year	¥ 3,402
Impairment losses for doubtful debts	1,962
Accounts receivable written off	(1,522)
At end of year	¥ 3,842

Contract Assets - Summary of Co

Contract Assets - Summary of Contract Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of contract assets [line items]
Contract Assets	¥ 474	¥ 478
Third parties [member]
Disclosure of contract assets [line items]
Contract Assets	447	454
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of contract assets [line items]
Contract Assets	¥ 27	¥ 24

Inventories - Summary of Invent

Inventories - Summary of Inventories (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Classes of current inventories [abstract]
Materials and supplies	¥ 577	¥ 1,012
Goods for resale	2,303	3,820
Inventories	¥ 2,880	¥ 4,832

Prepayments and Other Current_3

Prepayments and Other Current Assets - Summary of Prepayments and Other Current Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about prepayments and other current assets [Line Items]
Prepayments in connection with construction work and equipment purchases		¥ 3,352	¥ 2,752
Prepaid expenses and deposits		2,993	3,628
Value-added tax recoverable		8,803	8,618
Other receivables	[1]	5,294	6,960
Prepayments and other current assets		22,219	23,619
Other telecommunications operators in the PRC [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about prepayments and other current assets [Line Items]
Amounts due from companies		352	333
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about prepayments and other current assets [Line Items]
Amounts due from companies		1,233	1,035
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about prepayments and other current assets [Line Items]
Amounts due from companies		¥ 192	¥ 293
[1]	Other receivables as of December 31, 2018 include the unpaid remaining consideration of the contribution from non-controlling interest of a subsidiary of the Group amounting to RMB90, which was received in January 2019.

Prepayments and Other Current_4

Prepayments and Other Current Assets - Summary of Prepayments and Other Current Assets (Parenthetical) (Detail) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2018CNY (¥)
Miscellaneous current assets [abstract]
Unpaid remaining consideration of the contribution from non-controlling interest	¥ 90

Property, Plant and Equipment_3

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net - Summary of Property, Plant and Equipment, Net (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	¥ 407,795
Ending balance	410,008	¥ 407,795
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	988,481	974,390
Additions	1,105	1,530
Transferred from construction in progress	77,861	74,879
Retirement and disposal	(65,730)	(62,318)
Ending balance	1,001,717	988,481
Accumulated depreciation, amortization and impairment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	(580,686)	(568,133)
Depreciation charge for the year	(70,958)	(70,383)
Retirement and disposal	59,935	57,830
Ending balance	(591,709)	(580,686)
Buildings and improvements [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	44,241
Ending balance	42,580	44,241
Buildings and improvements [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	102,541	101,332
Additions	554	712
Transferred from construction in progress	2,060	1,454
Retirement and disposal	(751)	(860)
Reclassification	(39)	(97)
Ending balance	104,365	102,541
Buildings and improvements [member] | Accumulated depreciation, amortization and impairment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	(58,300)	(54,706)
Depreciation charge for the year	(4,185)	(4,370)
Retirement and disposal	681	750
Reclassification	19	26
Ending balance	(61,785)	(58,300)
Telecommunications network plant and equipment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	355,396
Ending balance	359,360	355,396
Telecommunications network plant and equipment [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	854,382	842,473
Additions	274	512
Transferred from construction in progress	74,157	71,704
Retirement and disposal	(62,560)	(59,822)
Reclassification	(536)	(485)
Ending balance	865,717	854,382
Telecommunications network plant and equipment [member] | Accumulated depreciation, amortization and impairment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	(498,986)	(491,066)
Depreciation charge for the year	(64,672)	(63,878)
Retirement and disposal	56,943	55,519
Reclassification	358	439
Ending balance	(506,357)	(498,986)
Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	8,158
Ending balance	8,068	8,158
Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment [member] | Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	31,558	30,585
Additions	277	306
Transferred from construction in progress	1,644	1,721
Retirement and disposal	(2,419)	(1,636)
Reclassification	575	582
Ending balance	31,635	31,558
Furniture, fixture, motor vehicles and other equipment [member] | Accumulated depreciation, amortization and impairment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about property, plant and equipment (line items]
Beginning balance	(23,400)	(22,361)
Depreciation charge for the year	(2,101)	(2,135)
Retirement and disposal	2,311	1,561
Reclassification	(377)	(465)
Ending balance	¥ (23,567)	¥ (23,400)

Construction in Progress - Summ

Construction in Progress - Summary of Construction in Progress (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about construction in progress [line items]
Beginning balance	¥ 66,644
Ending balance	59,206	¥ 66,644
Construction in progress [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about construction in progress [line items]
Beginning balance	66,644	73,106
Additions	76,870	74,457
Transferred to property, plant and equipment	(77,861)	(74,879)
Transferred to intangible assets	(6,447)	(6,040)
Ending balance	¥ 59,206	¥ 66,644

Right-of-Use-Assets - Summary o

Right-of-Use-Assets - Summary of Detailed Information About Operating Lease Right Of Use Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	¥ 61,549	¥ 65,524
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	12,343
Leasehold Land [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	20,952	21,568
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	732
Buildings [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	8,289	7,079
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	2,968
Tele communications towers and related assets [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	23,740	27,354
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	6,966
Property, plant and equipment [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	8,361	9,311
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	1,612
Other assets [member]
Disclosure of quantitative information about right-of-use assets [line items]
Carrying amount	207	¥ 212
Depreciation, right-of-use assets	¥ 65

Right-of-Use-Assets - Additiona

Right-of-Use-Assets - Additional Information (Detail) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)
Presentation of leases for lessee [abstract]
Expense relating to short-term leases and other leases with lease terms end within 12 months of the date of initial application of IFRS 16	¥ 939
Expense relating to leases of low-value assets, excluding short-term leases of low value assets	45
Variable lease payments not included in the measurement of lease liabilities	4,640
Total cash outflow for leases	18,240
Additions to right-of-use assets	¥ 9,172

Goodwill - Summary of Goodwill

Goodwill - Summary of Goodwill (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of reconciliation of changes in goodwill [abstract]
Goodwill arising from acquisition of CDMA business	¥ 29,923	¥ 29,922

Goodwill - Additional Informati

Goodwill - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Oct. 01, 2008
Disclosure of reconciliation of changes in goodwill [line items]
Cash flow projected period considering financial budgets for the purpose of goodwill impairment testing	Five-year
Pre-tax discount rate for the purpose of goodwill impairment testing	9.20%	9.40%
Annual growth rate for the purpose of goodwill impairment testing, used for cash flows beyond the five-year period which are projected to perpetuity	1.50%	1.50%
CDMA business [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of changes in goodwill [line items]
Total purchase price for acquiring equity interests			¥ 43,800
Net settlement amount of customer-related assets acquired and customer-related liabilities assumed			¥ 3,471
CDMA business [member] | Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of changes in goodwill [line items]
Percentage of equity interest acquired			99.50%

Intangible Assets - Summary of

Intangible Assets - Summary of Intangible Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about intangible assets [Line Items]
Beginning balance	¥ 14,161
Ending balance	16,349	¥ 14,161
Cost/Deemed cost [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about intangible assets [Line Items]
Beginning balance	37,314	34,550
Additions	624	269
Transferred from construction in progress	6,447	6,040
Disposals	(591)	(3,545)
Ending balance	43,794	37,314
Accumulated depreciation, amortization and impairment [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about intangible assets [Line Items]
Beginning balance	(23,153)	(22,159)
Amortization charge for the year	(4,844)	(4,366)
Disposals	552	3,372
Ending balance	¥ (27,445)	¥ (23,153)

Interests in Associates - Summa

Interests in Associates - Summary of Interests in Associates (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Share of post-acquisition changes in net assets	¥ 2,019	¥ 1,118
Interests in associates	39,192	38,051
Fair value of listed investments	55,601	46,797
At cost [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Interests in associates	¥ 37,173	¥ 36,933

Interests in Associates - Detai

Interests in Associates - Details of Principal Associates Accounted for under Equity Method (Detail)		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2019		Dec. 31, 2018
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Attributable equity interest		20.50%	[1]	20.50%
Principal activities	[1]	Construction, maintenance and operation of telecommunications towers as well as ancillary facilities
Shanghai Info Investment Incorporation [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Attributable equity interest		24.00%	[2]	24.00%
Principal activities	[2]	Provision of information technology consultancy services
[1]	China Tower Corporation Limited (“China Tower”) is established and operated in the PRC, and listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on August 8, 2018. Income from investments in associates for the year ended December 31, 2018 includes: (a) a one-off gain amounting to RMB1,170 arising from the dilution of the Company’s share in China Tower in respect of China Tower’s listing, including those released from the deferred gain from the disposal of telecommunications towers and related assets (the “Tower Assets Disposal”); and (b) share of profits of associates.
[2]	Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (“Shanghai Info-investment”) is established and operated in the PRC and is not traded on any stock exchange.

Interests in Associates - Sum_2

Interests in Associates - Summarized Financial Information of China Tower Corporation Limited and Reconciled to Carrying Amounts of Interests in Associates in Consolidated Financial Statements (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019		Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Current assets	¥ 73,182		¥ 73,005
Non-current assets	629,949		590,377
Current liabilities	264,661		258,920
Non-current liabilities	83,430		60,363
Operating revenues	375,734		377,124	¥ 366,229
Profit for the year	20,712		21,338	18,761
Other comprehensive income for the year	557		(95)	(552)
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,269		21,243	¥ 18,209
Reconcile to the Group's interests in the associate:
Non-controlling interests of the associate	(2,530)		(1,030)
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Current assets	40,995		31,799
Non-current assets	297,072		283,565
Current liabilities	128,364		114,759
Non-current liabilities	27,142		20,103
Operating revenues	76,428		71,819
Profit for the year	5,221		2,650
Other comprehensive income for the year
Total comprehensive income for the year	5,221		2,650
Dividend received from the associate	81
Reconcile to the Group's interests in the associate:
Net assets of the associate	182,561		¥ 180,502
Non-controlling interests of the associate	¥ (2)
The Group's effective interest in the associate	20.50%	[1]	20.50%
The Group's share of net assets of the associate	¥ 37,425		¥ 37,003
Adjustment for the remaining balance of the deferred gain from the Tower Assets Disposal	(865)		(1,013)
Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group	¥ 36,560		¥ 35,990
[1]	China Tower Corporation Limited (“China Tower”) is established and operated in the PRC, and listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on August 8, 2018. Income from investments in associates for the year ended December 31, 2018 includes: (a) a one-off gain amounting to RMB1,170 arising from the dilution of the Company’s share in China Tower in respect of China Tower’s listing, including those released from the deferred gain from the disposal of telecommunications towers and related assets (the “Tower Assets Disposal”); and (b) share of profits of associates.

Interests in Associates - Sum_3

Interests in Associates - Summarized Financial Information of Shanghai Info Investment Incorporation and Reconciled to Carrying Amounts of Interests in Associates in Consolidated Financial Statements (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019		Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Current assets	¥ 73,182		¥ 73,005
Non-current assets	629,949		590,377
Current liabilities	264,661		258,920
Non-current liabilities	83,430		60,363
Operating revenues	375,734		377,124	¥ 366,229
Profit for the year	20,712		21,338	18,761
Other comprehensive income for the year	557		(95)	(552)
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,269		21,243	¥ 18,209
Reconcile to the Group's interests in the associate:
Non-controlling interests of the associate	(2,530)		(1,030)
Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group	39,192		38,051
Shanghai Info Investment Incorporation [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
Current assets	4,292		7,181
Non-current assets	5,203		8,592
Current liabilities	2,494		6,615
Non-current liabilities	787		1,985
Operating revenues	3,214		4,337
Profit for the year	1,158		586
Other comprehensive income for the year	(7)		(29)
Total comprehensive income for the year	1,151		557
Dividend received from the associate	9		9
Reconcile to the Group's interests in the associate:
Net assets of the associate	6,214		7,173
Non-controlling interests of the associate	¥ (144)		¥ (2,180)
The Group's effective interest in the associate	24.00%	[1]	24.00%
The Group's share of net assets of the associate	¥ 1,457		¥ 1,198
Carrying amount of the interest in the associate in the consolidated financial statements of the Group	¥ 1,457		¥ 1,198
[1]	Shanghai Information Investment Incorporation (“Shanghai Info-investment”) is established and operated in the PRC and is not traded on any stock exchange.

Interests in Associates - Aggre

Interests in Associates - Aggregate Financial Information of Individually Immaterial Associates (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of associates [line items]
The Group's share of profit of these associates	¥ 1,573	¥ 2,104	¥ 877
Aggregate carrying amount of interests in these associates in the consolidated financial statements of the Group	39,192	38,051
Aggregated individually immaterial associates [member]
Disclosure of associates [line items]
The Group's share of profit of these associates	85	14
The Group's share of total comprehensive income of these associates	85	14
Aggregate carrying amount of interests in these associates in the consolidated financial statements of the Group	¥ 1,175	¥ 863

Equity Instruments at Fair Va_3

Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income - Summary of Equity Instruments at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of Fair Value of Investments in Equity Instruments Designated at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Fair Value Of Investments In Equity Instruments Designated As Measured At Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income		¥ 1,458	¥ 852
Equity securities listed in the mainland China [member]
Disclosure of Fair Value of Investments in Equity Instruments Designated at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Fair Value Of Investments In Equity Instruments Designated As Measured At Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income	[1]	1,228	638
Equity Securities Unlisted [member]
Disclosure of Fair Value of Investments in Equity Instruments Designated at Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Fair Value Of Investments In Equity Instruments Designated As Measured At Fair Value Through Other Comprehensive Income	[2]	¥ 230	¥ 214
[1]	The above listed equity instruments represent ordinary shares of entities listed in the mainland China. These investments are not held for trading, instead, they are held for long-term strategic purposes. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that recognizing short-term fluctuations in these investments’ fair value in profit or loss would not be consistent with the Group’s strategy of holding these investments for long-term purposes and realizing their performance potential in the long run.
[2]	The above unlisted equity securities represent the Group’s equity interests in various private entities established in the PRC. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that the Group will hold these investments for long-term strategic purposes.

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabi_3

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities - Components of Deferred Tax Assets and Deferred Tax Liabilities (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Assets	¥ 7,577	¥ 6,544
Liabilities	(19,078)	(13,138)
Net Balance	(11,501)	(6,594)	¥ (2,531)	¥ 291
Investments in equity instruments designated at fair value through other comprehensive income [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Liabilities	(234)	(87)
Net Balance	(234)	(87)
Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Assets	1,953	1,925
Net Balance	1,953	1,925	1,626
Property, plant and equipment and others [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Assets	4,862	4,580
Liabilities	(18,831)	(13,022)
Net Balance	(13,969)	(8,442)	(4,007)	(1,006)
Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Assets	744
Net Balance	744
Deferred revenues and installation costs [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Assets	18	39
Liabilities	(13)	(29)
Net Balance	¥ 5	¥ 10	¥ 19	¥ 35

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabi_4

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities - Movements in Deferred Tax Assets and Deferred Tax Liabilities (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance	¥ (6,594)	¥ (2,531)	¥ 291
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy	676	(863)
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	(5,583)	(3,200)	(2,822)
Ending balance	(11,501)	(6,594)	(2,531)
Investments in equity instruments designated at fair value through other comprehensive income [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance	(87)
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy		(169)
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	(147)	82
Ending balance	(234)	(87)
Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for doubtful debts [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance		1,626	1,531
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income			95
Ending balance			1,626
Provisions and impairment losses, primarily for credit losses [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance	1,925	1,626
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy		203
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	28	96
Ending balance	1,953	1,925	1,626
Property, plant and equipment and others [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance	(8,442)	(4,007)	(1,006)
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy		(1,066)
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	(5,527)	(3,369)	(3,001)
Ending balance	(13,969)	(8,442)	(4,007)
Right-of-use assets and lease liabilities [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy	676
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	68
Ending balance	744
Deferred revenues and installation costs [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance	10	19	35
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income	(5)	(9)	(16)
Ending balance	¥ 5	10	19
Available-for-sale equity securities [member]
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities recognized in the consolidated statement of financial position and the movements [line items]
Beginning balance		(169)	(269)
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy		¥ 169
Recognized in consolidated statement of comprehensive income			100
Ending balance			¥ (169)

Other Assets - Summary of Other

Other Assets - Summary of Other Assets (Detail) - Increase (decrease) due to application of IFRS 15 [member] - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of other assets [line items]
Other assets	¥ 4,687	¥ 4,840
Contract costs [member]
Disclosure of other assets [line items]
Other assets	988	1,287
Installation fees [member]
Disclosure of other assets [line items]
Other assets	56	124
Other long-term prepaid expenses [member]
Disclosure of other assets [line items]
Other assets	¥ 3,643	¥ 3,429

Other Assets - Summary of Oth_2

Other Assets - Summary of Other Assets (Parenthetical) (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Contract costs [member]
Disclosure of other assets [line items]
Capitalized costs recognized in profit or loss	¥ 1,367	¥ 1,744

Short-term and Long-term Debt -

Short-term and Long-term Debt - Summary of Short-term Debt (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Short-term debt	¥ 42,527	¥ 49,537
Loans from China Telecom Group—unsecured [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Short-term debt	6,621	8,584
Loans from banks—unsecured [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Short-term debt	15,831	12,881
Super short-term commercial papers—unsecured [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Short-term debt	19,995	27,992
Other loans—unsecured [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Short-term debt	¥ 80	¥ 80

Short-term and Long-term Debt_2

Short-term and Long-term Debt - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Unutilized committed credit facilities amount	¥ 245,847	¥ 150,693
Short-term debt [member] | Weighted average [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	2.90%	3.20%
Short-term debt [member] | China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	3.50%	3.50%
Loans from banks - unsecured and other loans - unsecured [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	3.50%	3.50%
Loans from banks - unsecured and other loans - unsecured [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	4.40%	4.60%
Super short-term commercial papers - unsecured [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	1.90%	2.10%
Super short-term commercial papers - unsecured [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	2.20%	3.30%

Short-term and Long-term Debt_3

Short-term and Long-term Debt - Summary of Long-term Debt (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	¥ 36,495	¥ 45,991
Less: Current portion	(4,444)	(1,139)
Non-current portion	32,051	44,852
Bank loans—unsecured [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	8,199	8,990
Bank loans—unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	7,738	8,455
Bank loans—unsecured [member] | US Dollars denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	288	336
Bank loans—unsecured [member] | Euro denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	173	199
Other loans—unsecured [member] | Medium term note [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	4,995
Other loans—unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	1	1
Loans from China Telecom Group—unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	¥ 23,300	¥ 37,000

Short-term and Long-term Debt_4

Short-term and Long-term Debt - Summary of Long-term Debt (Parenthetical) (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Mar. 19, 2019	Jan. 22, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 25, 2017
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Proceeds from borrowings			¥ 103,315	¥ 97,829	¥ 123,250
Long-term government loans with below-market interest rate [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			1.08%
Long-term government loans with below-market interest rate [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			1.20%
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument maturity through			2036
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			1.08%
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			1.20%
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | US Dollars denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument maturity through			2028
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | US Dollars denominated [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			1.25%
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | US Dollars denominated [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			2.00%
Bank loans - unsecured [member] | Euro denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate			2.30%
Debt instrument maturity through			2032
Loans from China Telecom Group – unsecured [member] | China Telecom Group [member] | Renminbi denominated [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate						3.80%
Repayment of partially loan			¥ 13,700	¥ 3,000
Loans from China Telecom Group – unsecured [member] | China Telecom Group [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument maturity through			3 years
Loans from China Telecom Group – unsecured [member] | China Telecom Group [member] | Renminbi denominated [member] | Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument maturity through			5 years
Medium term note [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Debt instrument interest rate	3.41%	3.42%
Proceeds from borrowings	¥ 2,000	¥ 3,000
Debt issue costs	¥ 3	¥ 3

Short-term and Long-term Debt_5

Short-term and Long-term Debt - Aggregate Maturities of Long-term Debt (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	¥ 36,495	¥ 45,991
Within 1 year or on demand [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	4,444
More than 1 year but less than 2 years [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	1,078
More than 2 years but less than 3 years [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	26,032
More than 3 years but less than 4 years [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	965
More than 4 years but less than 5 years [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	940
More than 5 years [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Total long-term debt	¥ 3,036

Accounts Payable - Summary of A

Accounts Payable - Summary of Accounts Payable (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accounts payable	¥ 102,616	¥ 107,887
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accounts payable	19,531	20,983
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accounts payable	4,312	2,850
Third parties [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accounts payable	78,123	83,418
Other telecommunications operators in the PRC [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accounts payable	¥ 650	¥ 636

Accrued Expenses and Other Pa_3

Accrued Expenses and Other Payables - Summary of Accrued Expenses and Other Payables (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Accrued expenses	¥ 34,628	¥ 33,811
Value-added tax payable	564	484
Customer deposits and receipts in advance	5,962	5,739
Accrued expenses and other payables	48,516	43,497
Other telecommunications operators in the PRC [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Amounts due to companies	32	46
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Amounts due to companies	6,069	2,171
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Amounts due to companies	¥ 1,261	¥ 1,246

Contract Liabilities - Summary

Contract Liabilities - Summary of Contract Liabilities (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of contract liabilities [line items]
Contract liabilities	¥ 54,388	¥ 55,783
Third parties [member]
Disclosure of contract liabilities [line items]
Contract liabilities	54,225	55,638
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of contract liabilities [line items]
Contract liabilities	162	¥ 145
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of contract liabilities [line items]
Contract liabilities	¥ 1

Contract Liabilities - Addition

Contract Liabilities - Additional Information (Detail) ¥ in Millions	Jan. 01, 2019CNY (¥)
Contract liabilities [abstract]
Contract liabilities at January 1, 2018	¥ 62,175

Lease Liabilities - Summary Of

Lease Liabilities - Summary Of Maturity For Opearting Lease Payments (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [line items]
Undiscounted operating lease payments to be received	¥ 42,146
Less: Current portion	11,569	¥ 10,260
Non-current lease liabilities	30,577	¥ 35,604
Within one year
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [line items]
Undiscounted operating lease payments to be received	11,569
Within a period of more than one year but not more than two years
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [line items]
Undiscounted operating lease payments to be received	10,887
Within a period of more than two year but not more than five years
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [line items]
Undiscounted operating lease payments to be received	16,255
Within a period of more than five years
Disclosure of maturity analysis of operating lease payments [line items]
Undiscounted operating lease payments to be received	¥ 3,435

Deferred Revenues - Summary of

Deferred Revenues - Summary of Deferred Revenues (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of Deferred Revenue [line items]
Balance at end of last year	¥ 1,829	¥ 2,274
Amortization of installation fees	(90)	(138)
Amortization of government grants	(284)	(307)
Balance at end of year	1,455	1,829
Current portion	358	375
Non-current portion	¥ 1,097	¥ 1,454

Share Capital - Summary of Shar

Share Capital - Summary of Share Capital (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of classes of share capital [line items]
Share capital	¥ 80,932	¥ 80,932
Domestic shares [member]
Disclosure of classes of share capital [line items]
Share capital	67,055	67,055
Overseas listed H shares [member]
Disclosure of classes of share capital [line items]
Share capital	¥ 13,877	¥ 13,877

Share Capital - Summary of Sh_2

Share Capital - Summary of Share Capital (Parenthetical) (Detail) - ¥ / shares	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 10, 2002
Domestic shares [member]
Disclosure of classes of share capital [line items]
Number of shares registered, issued and fully paid	67,054,958,321	67,054,958,321
Par value per share	¥ 1	¥ 1	¥ 1
Overseas listed H shares [member]
Disclosure of classes of share capital [line items]
Number of shares registered, issued and fully paid	13,877,410,000	13,877,410,000
Par value per share	¥ 1	¥ 1

Reserves - Summary of Reserves

Reserves - Summary of Reserves (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	¥ 344,099	¥ 326,697	¥ 316,348
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,269	21,243	18,209
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			(87)
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	(8)		(150)
Contribution from non-controlling interests	1,500	945
Dividends	(8,891)	(7,568)	(7,530)
Share of an associate's other changes in reserves	(305)
Others			(4)
Ending balance	355,040	344,099	326,697
Change in accounting policies [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(2,443)	2,974
Ending balance		(2,443)	2,974
Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	341,656	329,671
Ending balance		341,656	329,671
Capital reserve [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	17,806	17,126	17,160
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			(80)
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	3		46
Contribution from non-controlling interests		680
Share of an associate's other changes in reserves	(305)
Ending balance	17,504	17,806	17,126
Capital reserve [member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	17,806	17,126
Ending balance		17,806	17,126
Capital reserve [member] | Satcom Business and Zhonghehengtai [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			(80)
Share premium [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	10,746	10,746	10,746
Ending balance	10,746	10,746	10,746
Share premium [member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	10,746	10,746
Ending balance		10,746	10,746
Surplus reserve [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	76,474	74,297	72,611
Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve	1,812	1,875	1,686
Ending balance	78,043	76,474	74,297
Surplus reserve [member] | Change in accounting policies [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(243)	302
Ending balance		(243)	302
Surplus reserve [member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	76,231	74,599
Ending balance		76,231	74,599
General risk reserve [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Dividends	0
Appropriations to general risk reserve	23
Ending balance	23
Other reserves [Member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	160	414	711
Total comprehensive income for the year	455	(249)	(293)
Disposal of investments in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income		(5)
Others			(4)
Ending balance	615	160	414
Other reserves [Member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	160	414
Ending balance		160	414
Exchange reserve [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(727)	(881)	(622)
Total comprehensive income for the year	102	154	(259)
Ending balance	(625)	(727)	(881)
Exchange reserve [member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(727)	(881)
Ending balance		(727)	(881)
Retained earnings [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	157,678	143,233	133,839
Total comprehensive income for the year	20,517	21,210	18,617
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			(7)
Disposal of investments in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income		5
Dividends	(8,891)	(7,568)	(7,530)
Appropriations to statutory surplus reserve	(1,812)	(1,875)	(1,686)
Appropriations to general risk reserve	(23)
Ending balance	165,272	157,678	143,233
Retained earnings [member] | Change in accounting policies [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(2,197)	2,673
Ending balance		(2,197)	2,673
Retained earnings [member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	155,481	145,906
Ending balance		155,481	145,906
Retained earnings [member] | Satcom Business and Zhonghehengtai [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			(7)
Reserves [Member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	262,137	244,935	234,445
Total comprehensive income for the year	21,074	21,115	18,065
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	3		46
Contribution from non-controlling interests		680
Dividends	(8,891)	(7,568)	(7,530)
Share of an associate's other changes in reserves	(305)
Others			(4)
Ending balance	271,578	262,137	244,935
Reserves [Member] | Change in accounting policies [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	(2,440)	2,975
Ending balance		(2,440)	2,975
Reserves [Member] | Restated balance [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Beginning balance	¥ 259,697	247,910
Ending balance		¥ 259,697	247,910
Reserves [Member] | Satcom Business and Zhonghehengtai [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Acquisition of the Eighth Acquired Group			¥ (87)

Reserves - Summary of Reserve_2

Reserves - Summary of Reserves (Parenthetical) (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Jan. 01, 2019
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Percentage of net profit the Company is required to transfer to statutory surplus reserve		10.00%
Percentage of registered capital when the appropriation to statutory surplus reserve may cease		50.00%
Minimum percentage of statutory reserves to registered capital, after bonus share issuance, that must be maintained		25.00%
Statutory surplus reserve	¥ 31,964	¥ 31,964	¥ 30,395	¥ 30,152
Discretionary surplus reserve	46,079	46,079	46,079
Amount of retained earnings available for distribution	138,312	138,312	133,076	¥ 130,892
Final dividend for financial year 2019 proposed after the end of the reporting period, total	¥ 9,126	9,126
Statutory reserves [member]
Disclosure of reserves with in equity [line items]
Appropriations		¥ 1,812	¥ 1,875

Operating Revenues - Disclosure

Operating Revenues - Disclosure of Disaggregation of Revenues (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	¥ 369,897	¥ 372,821
Revenue from other sources	5,837	4,303
Total operating revenues	375,734	377,124
Voice services [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	45,146	50,811
Internet services [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	197,244	190,871
Information and application services [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	87,623	83,478
Telecommunications network resource and equipment services [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	21,978	20,211
Sales of goods and others [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	17,906	27,450
A point in time [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Total operating revenues	14,591	24,496
Over time [member]
Disclosure of revenue [line items]
Total operating revenues	¥ 361,143	¥ 352,628

Operating Revenues - Additional

Operating Revenues - Additional Information (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of Operating Revenue [line items]
Estimated period of recognizing revenues	1 year to 3 years	1 year to 3 years
Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of Operating Revenue [line items]
Estimated period of recognizing revenues	1 year	1 year
Top of range [member]
Disclosure of Operating Revenue [line items]
Estimated period of recognizing revenues	3 years	3 years

Operating Revenues - Components

Operating Revenues - Components of Operating Revenues (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Revenue [abstract]
Voice			¥ 61,678
Internet			172,554
Information and application services			73,044
Telecommunications network resource and equipment services			19,125
Others			39,828
Operating revenues	¥ 375,734	¥ 377,124	¥ 366,229

Network Operations and Suppor_3

Network Operations and Support Expenses - Summary of Network Operations and Support Expenses (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Expenses by nature [abstract]
Operating and maintenance	¥ 65,087	¥ 64,056	¥ 55,360
Utility	13,818	13,477	12,522
Network resources usage and related fee	20,976	29,434	26,926
Others	9,918	9,095	9,161
Network operations and support expenses	¥ 109,799	¥ 116,062	¥ 103,969

Personnel Expenses - Personnel

Personnel Expenses - Personnel Expenses by Functions (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of personnel expenses [line items]
Personnel expenses	¥ 63,567	¥ 59,736	¥ 56,043
Network operations and support [member]
Disclosure of personnel expenses [line items]
Personnel expenses	42,214	40,388	38,574
Selling, general and administrative [member]
Disclosure of personnel expenses [line items]
Personnel expenses	¥ 21,353	¥ 19,348	¥ 17,469

Other Operating Expenses - Summ

Other Operating Expenses - Summary of Other Operating Expenses (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Expenses by nature [abstract]
Interconnection charges	¥ 12,683	¥ 12,878	¥ 12,223
Cost of goods sold	13,413	23,185	31,712
Donations	1	20	23
Others	1,695	1,614	1,654
Other operating expenses	¥ 27,792	¥ 37,697	¥ 45,612

Net Finance Costs - Summary of

Net Finance Costs - Summary of Net Finance Costs (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of finance costs [Line Items]
Interest expense on short-term and long-term debts	¥ 2,623	¥ 3,278	¥ 3,913
Interest expense on lease liabilities	1,607
Less: Interest expense capitalized	(140)	(185)	(327)
Net interest expense	4,090	3,093	3,586
Interest income	(492)	(306)	(429)
Foreign exchange losses	680	423	664
Foreign exchange gains	(639)	(502)	(530)
Net finance costs	¥ 3,639	¥ 2,708	¥ 3,291
Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of finance costs [Line Items]
Capitalization rate of interest expense in construction in progress per annum	3.50%	3.80%	3.90%
Top of range [member]
Disclosure of finance costs [Line Items]
Capitalization rate of interest expense in construction in progress per annum	4.40%	4.40%	4.90%

Income Tax - Summary of Income

Income Tax - Summary of Income Tax in Profit or Loss (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of income tax expense and deferred taxes [line items]
Deferred taxation	¥ 5,436	¥ 3,282	¥ 2,922
Actual income tax expense	6,322	6,810	6,192
PRC [member]
Disclosure of income tax expense and deferred taxes [line items]
Provision for income tax	781	3,408	3,147
Other tax jurisdictions [member]
Disclosure of income tax expense and deferred taxes [line items]
Provision for income tax	¥ 105	¥ 120	¥ 123

Income Tax - Reconciliation of

Income Tax - Reconciliation of Expected Tax Expense with Actual Tax Expense (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Reconciliation of average effective tax rate and applicable tax rate [abstract]
Earnings before income tax	¥ 27,034	¥ 28,148	¥ 24,953
Expected income tax expense at statutory tax rate of 25%	6,759	7,037	6,238
Differential tax rate on PRC subsidiaries' and branches' income	(315)	(291)	(108)
Differential tax rate on other subsidiaries' income	(129)	(58)	(82)
Non-deductible expenses	979	537	380
Non-taxable income	(460)	(319)	(112)
Others	(512)	(96)	(124)
Actual income tax expense	¥ 6,322	¥ 6,810	¥ 6,192

Dividends - Additional Informat

Dividends - Additional Information (Detail) ¥ / shares in Units, ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2019$ / shares	Jul. 26, 2019CNY (¥)¥ / shares	Jul. 26, 2019$ / shares	Jul. 27, 2018CNY (¥)¥ / shares	Jul. 27, 2018$ / shares	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)
Disclosure of Dividends [abstract]
Final dividend for financial year 2019 proposed after the end of the reporting period, per share | $ / shares		$ 0.125
Final dividend for financial year 2019 proposed after the end of the reporting period, total	¥ 9,126						¥ 9,126
Dividends paid, per share | (per share)			¥ 0.109851	$ 0.125	¥ 0.093512	$ 0.115
Dividends paid, total			¥ 8,891		¥ 7,568

Basic Earnings Per Share - Addi

Basic Earnings Per Share - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions, shares in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Earnings per share [abstract]
Profit attributable to equity holders of the Company	¥ 20,517	¥ 21,210	¥ 18,617
Number of shares	80,932	80,932	80,932

Commitments and Contingencies -

Commitments and Contingencies - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Material income and expense [abstract]
Rental expense related to operating leases	¥ 27,810	¥ 25,493

Commitments and Contingencies_2

Commitments and Contingencies - Future Minimum Lease Payments under Non-cancellable Operating Leases (Detail) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2018CNY (¥)
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	¥ 65,805
Within 1 year or on demand [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	15,658
More than 1 year but less than 2 years [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	14,466
More than 2 years but less than 3 years [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	13,440
More than 3 years but less than 4 years [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	12,682
More than 4 years but less than 5 years [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	3,461
More than 5 years [member]
Disclosure Of Lease By Lessee [Line Items]
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases	¥ 6,098

Commitments and Contingencies_3

Commitments and Contingencies - Capital Commitments (Detail) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)
Disclosure of commitments [line items]
Capital commitments	¥ 20,941
Property [member]
Disclosure of commitments [line items]
Capital commitments, Contracted for but not provided	1,810
Telecommunications network plant and equipment [member]
Disclosure of commitments [line items]
Capital commitments, Contracted for but not provided	¥ 19,131

Financial Instruments - Additio

Financial Instruments - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about financial instruments [line items]
Transfers among instruments between levels of fair value		¥ 0
Loss allowance for accounts receivable		4,692	¥ 4,680
Loss allowance for contract assets		8	8
Loss allowance individually calculated		¥ 615	¥ 734
Fixed rate debt as a percentage of total debt		82.90%	99.80%
Percentage of cash and cash equivalents denominated in Renminbi		78.00%	64.00%
Percentage of short-term and long-term debt denominated in Renminbi		99.40%	99.40%
Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income		¥ 1,458	¥ 852
Equity securities listed in the mainland China [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about financial instruments [line items]
Equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income	[1]	¥ 1,228	¥ 638
Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about financial instruments [line items]
Interest rates used by the Group in estimating the fair values of long-term debt		1.00%	3.70%
Minimum period for managing liquidity risk		3 months
Top of range [member]
Disclosure of detailed information about financial instruments [line items]
Interest rates used by the Group in estimating the fair values of long-term debt		4.90%	4.90%
Minimum period for managing liquidity risk		6 months
[1]	The above listed equity instruments represent ordinary shares of entities listed in the mainland China. These investments are not held for trading, instead, they are held for long-term strategic purposes. The directors of the Company have elected to designate these investments in equity instruments as of FVTOCI as they believe that recognizing short-term fluctuations in these investments’ fair value in profit or loss would not be consistent with the Group’s strategy of holding these investments for long-term purposes and realizing their performance potential in the long run.

Financial Instruments - Carryin

Financial Instruments - Carrying Amounts and Fair Value of Long-term Debt (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Carrying amount	¥ 272,300	¥ 247,218
Long-term debt [member]
Disclosure of financial liabilities [line items]
Carrying amount	36,495	45,991
Fair value	¥ 35,780	¥ 44,968

Financial Instruments - Summary

Financial Instruments - Summary of Accounts Receivables (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Loss allowance	¥ 4,692	¥ 4,680
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Gross carrying amount	12,146	13,368
Loss allowance	¥ 2,803	¥ 2,898
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | Current, within 1 month [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	2.00%	2.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 7,545	¥ 8,376
Loss allowance	¥ 141	¥ 158
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | 1 to 3 months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	20.00%	20.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 1,777	¥ 2,117
Loss allowance	¥ 349	¥ 420
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | 4 to 6 months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	60.00%	60.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 739	¥ 839
Loss allowance	¥ 444	¥ 502
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | 7 to 12 months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	80.00%	80.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 1,083	¥ 1,093
Loss allowance	¥ 867	¥ 875
Telephone and Internet subscribers [member] | More than 12 months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	100.00%	100.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 1,002	¥ 943
Loss allowance	¥ 1,002	¥ 943

Financial Instruments - Summa_2

Financial Instruments - Summary of Accounts Receivable From Enterprise Customers and Contract Assets (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Loss allowance	¥ 4,692	¥ 4,680
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Gross carrying amount	8,130	6,280
Loss allowance	¥ 1,282	¥ 1,056
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member] | Later than one month and not later than six months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	2.00%	2.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 5,452	¥ 4,478
Loss allowance	¥ 102	¥ 109
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member] | 7 to 12 months [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	20.00%	20.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 1,428	¥ 800
Loss allowance	¥ 239	¥ 157
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member] | More than 1 year but less than 2 years [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	60.00%	60.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 621	¥ 479
Loss allowance	¥ 353	¥ 290
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member] | More than 2 years but less than 3 years [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	90.00%	90.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 258	¥ 225
Loss allowance	¥ 224	¥ 202
Enterprise customers and contract assets [member] | Later than three years [member]
Disclosure of information about Group's exposure to credit risk and expected credit losses for accounts receivable [line items]
Expected loss rate	100.00%	100.00%
Gross carrying amount	¥ 371	¥ 298
Loss allowance	¥ 364	¥ 298

Financial Instruments - Summa_3

Financial Instruments - Summary of Movements in Loss Allowance Account in Respect of Accounts Receivables (Detail) - Accounts receivable [member] - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial assets [line items]
At beginning of year	¥ 4,680	¥ 4,761
Impairment losses for ECL	1,653	2,008
Amounts written off	(1,641)	(2,089)
At end of year	¥ 4,692	¥ 4,680

Financial Instruments - Remaini

Financial Instruments - Remaining Contractual Maturities of Financial Liabilities Based on Contractual Undiscounted Cash Flows and Earliest Date of Repayment Required (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of carrying amount and total contractual undiscounted cash flow for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Short-term debt, carrying amount	¥ 42,527	¥ 49,537
Long-term debt, carrying amount	36,495	45,991
Accounts payable, carrying amount	102,616	107,887
Accrued expenses and other payables, carrying amount	48,516	43,497
Finance lease obligations, carrying amount	42,146	216
Financial liabilities, carrying amount	272,300	247,218
Short-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	43,697	51,091
Long-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	40,791	52,625
Accounts payable, contractual undiscounted cash flow	102,616	107,887
Accrued expenses and other payables, contractual undiscounted cash flow	48,516	43,497
Finance lease obligations, contractual undiscounted cash flow	45,535	241
Financial liabilities, contractual undiscounted cash flow	281,155	255,341
Within 1 year or on demand [member]
Disclosure of carrying amount and total contractual undiscounted cash flow for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Long-term debt, carrying amount	4,444
Short-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	43,697	51,091
Long-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	4,625	2,602
Accounts payable, contractual undiscounted cash flow	102,616	107,887
Accrued expenses and other payables, contractual undiscounted cash flow	48,516	43,497
Finance lease obligations, contractual undiscounted cash flow	12,846	112
Financial liabilities, contractual undiscounted cash flow	212,300	205,189
More than 1 year but less than 2 years [member]
Disclosure of carrying amount and total contractual undiscounted cash flow for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Long-term debt, carrying amount	1,078
Short-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Long-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	1,184	19,604
Accounts payable, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Accrued expenses and other payables, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Finance lease obligations, contractual undiscounted cash flow	11,794	40
Financial liabilities, contractual undiscounted cash flow	12,978	19,644
More than 2 years but less than 5 years [member]
Disclosure of carrying amount and total contractual undiscounted cash flow for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Short-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Long-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	30,824	25,061
Accounts payable, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Accrued expenses and other payables, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Finance lease obligations, contractual undiscounted cash flow	17,266	82
Financial liabilities, contractual undiscounted cash flow	48,090	25,143
More than 5 years [member]
Disclosure of carrying amount and total contractual undiscounted cash flow for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Long-term debt, carrying amount	3,036
Short-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Long-term debt, contractual undiscounted cash flow	4,158	5,358
Accounts payable, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Accrued expenses and other payables, contractual undiscounted cash flow	0
Finance lease obligations, contractual undiscounted cash flow	3,629	7
Financial liabilities, contractual undiscounted cash flow	¥ 7,787	¥ 5,365

Financial Instruments - Interes

Financial Instruments - Interest Rate Profile of Debt (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Short-term debt	¥ 42,527	¥ 49,537
Long-term debt	36,495	45,991
Total debt	¥ 79,022	¥ 95,528
Fixed rate debt as a percentage of total debt	82.90%	99.80%
Fixed rate debt [member]
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Short-term debt	¥ 29,022	¥ 49,347
Long-term debt	36,495	45,991
Total debt	¥ 65,517	¥ 95,338
Fixed rate debt [member] | Short-term debt [member]
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Effective interest rate	2.50%	3.20%
Fixed rate debt [member] | Long-term debt [member]
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Effective interest rate	3.10%	3.30%
Variable rate debt [member]
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Short-term debt	¥ 13,505	¥ 190
Total debt	¥ 13,505	¥ 190
Variable rate debt [member] | Short-term debt [member]
Disclosure of financial instruments by type of interest rate [line items]
Effective interest rate	3.80%	4.20%

Capital Management - Additional

Capital Management - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Statement [LineItems]
Total debt-to-total assets ratio	11.20%	14.40%
Deposits Received [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Debts excluded in debt to total assets ratio	¥ 4,098
Lease liabilities [member]
Statement [LineItems]
Debts excluded in debt to total assets ratio	¥ 42,146	¥ 0

Reconciliation of Liabilities_3

Reconciliation of Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities - Summary of Changes in Group's Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	¥ 95,744	¥ 104,583
Financing cash flows	(32,473)	(17,138)
New finance leases	8,856	200
Lease modifications	(589)
Transferred to lease payables	(2,900)
Interest expenses	1,891	316
Foreign exchange gain	9	18
Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests		20
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	8		¥ 150
Distribution to non-controlling interests	181	177	89
Dividends declared	8,891	7,568
Change in accounting policy	45,648
Ending balance	125,266	95,744	104,583
Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	141,392
Ending balance		141,392
Short-term Debt [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	49,537	54,558
Financing cash flows	(7,010)	(5,021)
Ending balance	42,527	49,537	54,558
Short-term Debt [member] | Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	49,537
Ending balance		49,537
Long-term debt [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	45,991	49,742
Financing cash flows	(9,782)	(4,073)
Interest expenses	284	304
Foreign exchange gain	2	18
Ending balance	36,495	45,991	49,742
Long-term debt [member] | Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	45,991
Ending balance		45,991
Lease liabilities/finance lease obligations [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	216	77
Financing cash flows	(10,699)	(73)
New finance leases	8,856	200
Lease modifications	(589)
Transferred to lease payables	(2,900)
Interest expenses	1,607	12
Foreign exchange gain	7
Change in accounting policy	45,648
Ending balance	42,146	216	77
Lease liabilities/finance lease obligations [member] | Increase (decrease) due to changes in accounting policy [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance	45,864
Ending balance		45,864
Dividend Payable [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Financing cash flows	(9,072)	(7,745)
Distribution to non-controlling interests	181	177
Dividends declared	8,891	7,568
Deposits With Finance Company [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Financing cash flows	4,098
Ending balance	4,098
Other Payables In Respect Of Certain Equity Transactions [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Beginning balance		206
Financing cash flows	(8)	(226)
Reduction of capital by non-controlling interests		¥ 20
Acquisition of non-controlling interests	¥ 8
Ending balance			¥ 206

Reconciliation of Liabilities_4

Reconciliation of Liabilities Arising from Financing Activities - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Net financing cash flows	¥ 32,473
Contribution from non-controlling interests	1,590	¥ 855
Statutory reserve deposits	405
E Surfing Pay [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Contribution from non-controlling interests	90
Contribution from non-controlling interests receivable	945
Finance Company [member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Contribution from non-controlling interests	1,500
China Telecom Group [Member]
Disclosure of reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities [line Items]
Net deposits	¥ 4,098	¥ 0

Related Party Transactions - Pr

Related Party Transactions - Principal Transactions and Amounts Due From/To China Telecom Group (Detail) - China Telecom Group [member] - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [Line Items]
Construction and engineering services	¥ 14,014	¥ 16,396	¥ 18,672
Receiving ancillary services	18,571	16,744	16,072
Interconnection revenues	97	80	48
Interconnection charges	183	204	193
Receiving community services	3,464	3,296	3,028
Net transaction amount of centralized services	133	519	727
Property lease income	57	48	53
Property lease expenses	577	713	654
Addition to right-of-use assets	284
Interest expense on lease liabilities	11
Provision of IT services	464	531	642
Receiving IT services	2,175	1,895	1,812
Purchases of telecommunications equipment and materials	3,538	3,760	4,248
Sales of telecommunications equipment and materials	1,444	2,760	3,291
Internet applications channel services	108	298	344
Interest on amounts due to and loans from China Telecom Group	1,485	2,099	2,720
Others	189	186	¥ 190
Net deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company	4,098
Interest expense on the deposit by China Telecom Group with Finance Company	7
Accounts receivable	1,188	1,327
Contract assets	27	24
Prepayments and other current assets	1,233	1,035
Total amounts due from related party	2,448	2,386
Accounts payable	19,531	20,983
Accrued expenses and other payables	6,069	2,171
Contract liabilities	162	145
Lease liabilities	389
Short-term debt	6,621	8,584
Long-term debt	23,300	37,000
Total amounts due to related party	¥ 56,072	¥ 68,883

Related Party Transactions - Ad

Related Party Transactions - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
China Telecom Group [member]
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [Line Items]
Loss allowance	¥ 0	¥ 0
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [Line Items]
Loss allowance	¥ 0	¥ 0

Related Party Transactions - _2

Related Party Transactions - Principal Transactions and Amounts Due From/To China Tower (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [Line Items]
Additions of right-of-use assets	¥ 9,172
Interest expense on lease liabilities	1,607
China Tower [member]
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [Line Items]
Tower assets lease related expenses	10,543	¥ 16,063	¥ 15,389
Additions of right-of-use assets	3,735
Interest expense on lease liabilities	938
Provision of IT services	31	32	¥ 49
Accounts receivable	5	10
Prepayments and other current assets	192	293
Total amounts due from related party	197	303
Accounts payable	4,312	2,850
Accrued expenses and other payables	1,261	1,246
Contract liabilities	1
Lease liabilities	24,474
Total amounts due to related party	¥ 30,048	¥ 4,096

Related Party Transactions - Ke

Related Party Transactions - Key Management Personnel Compensation (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of transactions between related parties [abstract]
Short-term employee benefits	¥ 9,604	¥ 7,942	¥ 7,804
Post-employment benefits	1,199	799	816
Key management personnel compensation	¥ 10,803	¥ 8,741	¥ 8,620

Post-employment Benefits Plans

Post-employment Benefits Plans - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of defined benefit plans [Line Items]
Contribution to post-employment benefit plans	¥ 8,616	¥ 7,256	¥ 6,884
Amount payable for contributions to defined contribution retirement plans	¥ 755	¥ 675
Bottom of range [member]
Disclosure of defined benefit plans [Line Items]
Contributions to the retirement plans, percentage of the salaries, bonuses and certain allowances of the employees	14.00%
Top of range [member]
Disclosure of defined benefit plans [Line Items]
Contributions to the retirement plans, percentage of the salaries, bonuses and certain allowances of the employees	20.00%

Share Appreciation Rights - Add

Share Appreciation Rights - Additional Information (Detail) - Share appreciation rights [member]	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2018$ / shares	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2018CNY (¥)	Nov. 30, 2023	Nov. 30, 2022	Nov. 30, 2021
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [Line Items]
Share appreciation right units to eligible employees, number of units approved for granting	2,394,000,000
Share appreciation right units to eligible employees, exercise price | $ / shares	$ 3.81
Share appreciation rights, contractual life	5 years
Number of share appreciation right units exercised		0	0
Compensation expense in respect of share appreciation rights		¥ 136	¥ 30
Liability arising from share appreciation rights		¥ 166	¥ 30
Third Anniversary [member]
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [Line Items]
Share appreciation right units to eligible employees, maximum percentage exercisable						33.30%
Fourth Anniversary [member]
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [Line Items]
Share appreciation right units to eligible employees, maximum percentage exercisable					66.70%
Fifth Anniversary [member]
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [Line Items]
Share appreciation right units to eligible employees, maximum percentage exercisable				100.00%

Principal Subsidiaries - Detail

Principal Subsidiaries - Details of Subsidiaries which Principally Affected Results, Assets and Liabilities of the Group (Detail) £ in Thousands, ₫ in Millions, ₩ in Millions, ¥ in Millions, RM in Millions, MOP$ in Millions, $ in Millions, $ in Millions, $ in Millions, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2019HKD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019MOP (MOP$)	Dec. 31, 2019AUD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019KRW (₩)	Dec. 31, 2019SGD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019MYR (RM)	Dec. 31, 2019VND (₫)	Dec. 31, 2019GBP (£)	Dec. 31, 2018CNY (¥)
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Registered/issued capital	¥ 80,932										¥ 80,932
China Telecom System Integration Co., Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom System Integration Co., Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Sep. 13, 2001
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of system integration and consulting services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 542
China Telecom Global Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Global Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Feb. 25, 2000
Place of incorporation and operation	Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the PRC
Principal activities	Provision of telecommunications services
Registered/issued capital | $		$ 168
China Telecom (Americas) Corporation [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Americas) Corporation
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Nov. 22, 2001
Place of incorporation and operation	The United States of America
Principal activities	Provision of telecommunications services
Registered/issued capital | $			$ 43
China Telecom Best Tone Information Service Co., Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Best Tone Information Service Co., Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Aug. 15, 2007
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of Best Tone information services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 350
China Telecom (Macau) Company Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Macau) Company Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Oct. 15, 2004
Place of incorporation and operation	Macau Special Administrative Region of the PRC
Principal activities	Provision of telecommunications services
Registered/issued capital | MOP$				MOP$ 60
Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	Tianyi Telecom Terminals Company Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jul. 1, 2005
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Sales of telecommunications terminals
Registered/issued capital	¥ 500
China Telecom (Singapore) Pte. Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Singapore) Pte. Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Oct. 5, 2006
Place of incorporation and operation	Singapore
Principal activities	Provision of international value-added network services
Registered/issued capital | $							$ 1,000,001
E-surfing Pay Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	E-surfing Pay Co., Ltd
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Mar. 3, 2011
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of e-commerce service
Registered/issued capital	¥ 635
Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	May 5, 1984
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of telecommunications services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 91
China Telecom (Australia) Pty Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Australia) Pty Ltd
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jan. 10, 2011
Place of incorporation and operation	Australia
Principal activities	Provision of international value-added network services
Registered/issued capital | $					$ 1
China Telecom Korea Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Korea Co.,Ltd
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	May 16, 2012
Place of incorporation and operation	South Korea
Principal activities	Provision of international value-added network services
Registered/issued capital | ₩						₩ 500
China Telecom (Malaysia) SDN BHD [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Malaysia) SDN BHD
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jun. 26, 2012
Place of incorporation and operation	Malaysia
Principal activities	Provision of international value-added network services
Registered/issued capital | RM								RM 3,723,500
China Telecom Information Technology (Vietnam) Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Information Technology (Vietnam) Co., Ltd
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jul. 9, 2012
Place of incorporation and operation	Vietnam
Principal activities	Provision of international value-added network services
Registered/issued capital | ₫									₫ 10,500
iMUSIC Culture & Technology Co., Ltd. [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	iMUSIC Culture & Technology Co., Ltd.
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jun. 9, 2013
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of music production and related information services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 250
China Telecom (Europe) Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom (Europe) Limited
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Mar. 2, 2006
Place of incorporation and operation	The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Principal activities	Provision of telecommunications services
Registered/issued capital | £										£ 16,150
Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd. [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd.
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Aug. 19, 2013
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of instant messenger service
Registered/issued capital	¥ 11
Tianyi Capital Holding Co., Ltd. [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	Tianyi Capital Holding Co., Ltd.
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Nov. 30, 2017
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Capital Investment and provision of consulting services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 5,000
China Telecom Leasing Corporation Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Leasing Corporation Limited.
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Nov. 30, 2018
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of finance lease service
Registered/issued capital	¥ 5,000
China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Name of company	China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd. ("Finance Company")
Type of legal entity	Limited Company
Date of incorporation	Jan. 8, 2019
Place of incorporation and operation	PRC
Principal activities	Provision of capital and financial management services
Registered/issued capital	¥ 5,000

Principal Subsidiaries - Additi

Principal Subsidiaries - Additional Information (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Shenzhen Shekou Telecommunications Company Limited [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Percentage owned by the company	51.00%
Zhejiang Yixin Technology Co., Ltd. [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Percentage owned by the company	65.00%
E-surfing Pay Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Percentage owned by the company	78.74%
China Telecom Group Finance Co., Ltd [member]
Disclosure of subsidiaries [line Items]
Percentage owned by the company	70.00%

Accounting Estimates and Judg_2

Accounting Estimates and Judgments - Additional Information (Detail) - CNY (¥) ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of changes in accounting estimates [Line Items]
Provision for impairment loss for long-lived assets	¥ 0	¥ 0	¥ 10

Events After the Reporting Pe_2

Events After the Reporting Period - Additional Information (Detail) - Events After Reporting Date [member] - Corporate Bonds [member] ¥ in Millions	Mar. 10, 2020CNY (¥)
Disclosure of Events After Reporting Period [line items]
Corporate bonds	¥ 2,000
Debt instrument interest rate	2.90%