Major Japanese trader Sumitomo Corp. said Tuesday it will launch high-speed wireless communications services in Uzbekistan in the second half of 2008.

Sumitomo will offer the services based on the worldwide interoperability for microwave access, or WiMAX, format, by acquiring two firms based in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent jointly with South Korea’s leading telecommunications carrier KT Corp.

Specifically, Sumitomo will snap up a 34 pct stake in one of the two firms, East Telecom, and a 40 pct stake in the other, Super iMax. KT will buy a stake of 51 pct in East Telecom and a 60 pct stake in Super iMax.

Sumitomo and KT are expected to spend a total of 8 billion yen on the share acquisitions and purchases of new shares to be issued by the two local companies later.

East Telecom and Super iMax will aim to achieve combined annual sales of 61 million dollars in 2012, according to Sumitomo.

Sumitomo, which is currently offering WiMAX-based wireless telecommunications services in 25 cities in Russia, is aiming to promote the services in former Soviet republics.