Saturday 22 July 2017

ICD profit drops 21 % as transport sector takes a beating - The National

ICD profit drops 21 % as transport sector takes a beating - The National:

"The Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), the emirate’s sovereign wealth fund with strategic holdings that include Emirates airline, Emirates Global Aluminium and lender Emirates NBD, posted a 21.4 per cent decline in full-year net profit for 2016, as the transport sector took a hit and the fund benefited in 2015 from a one-off gain from the sale of aviation services company Standard Aero.

Net profit for equity holders in the 12 months ending December 31 reached Dh17.99 billion compared with Dh20.89bn in 2015, the fund said in a statement on Nasdaq Dubai. Revenue dipped 0.5 per cent to Dh176.31bn from Dh177.14bn in 2015.

ICD attributed the net profit plunge to “increased competitive pressure on yields” in its transportation segment and to a 2015 gain from discontinued operations following the sale of Standard Aero, a unit of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE), an aircraft leasing and maintenance company in which ICD has an 80.53 per cent stake. DAE sold Standard Aero to an affiliate of private equity firm Veritas Capital for Dh5bn, booking a gain of Dh2.07bn, according to ICD’s financial statements."



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IMF Sees 2017 Saudi Growth ‘Close to Zero’ on Oil Prices, Cuts - Bloomberg

IMF Sees 2017 Saudi Growth ‘Close to Zero’ on Oil Prices, Cuts - Bloomberg:

"Saudi Arabia’s economy will stall this year with growth “close to zero” due to lower oil revenue, the International Monetary Fund said.

 The fund lowered its 2017 growth forecast to 0.1 percent from 0.4 percent, citing OPEC production cuts, uncertainty over oil prices and the structural reforms the country is undertaking to reduce its reliance on crude, it said in a statement on Friday concluding its Article IV consultation. The IMF also lowered its non-oil growth projection to 1.7 percent from 2.1 percent -- compared with actual growth of 0.2 percent in 2016.

Lower oil prices and austerity measures are weighing on Saudi Arabia’s economy, which contracted in the first quarter for the first time since 2009 -- illustrating the scale of the challenge facing the country’s new heir, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as he implements his blueprint for a transition away from oil dependency. Even so, the fund said it welcomed the government’s direction, which it said would help the fiscal deficit “narrow substantially in the coming years.”

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