Thursday, 11 February 2010
Emirates NBD profits fall surprises on upside
Dubai-based Emirates NBD, the Middle East’s largest bank by assets, on Thursday announced full-year net profits of Dh3.3bn ($898m), down 9 per cent on 2008, despite a doubling in bad debt charges and financial trouble at one of its real estate investments.
The bank’s non-performing loans ratio, the focus of analysts’ attention, grew “in line with expectations” to 2.36 per cent from 1.88 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2009 and 0.95 per cent reported in 2008. Most analysts think that Dubai property prices have fallen by at least 50 per cent since their peak in 2008.
Ratings agencies such as Fitch have said they are concerned about the impact of deteriorating asset quality on profitability, with Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, another sizeable UAE bank, having announced a loss in 2009. The agencies also say that the full impact of Dubai World’s $22bn debt restructuring on UAE banks is unlikely to reveal itself until after a standstill agreement is formalised.
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Every confusion in Dubai is due to global recession.We can wait for some time.But,it is the right time to invest in Dubai
ReplyDeleteIndeed, many distressed assets available for cash buyers!
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