|
 |
News |
 |
|
| |
Email this article |
 Printer Friendly Version
|
| |
Dubai’s debt triples |
| |
09.25.2009 |
| |
|
| |
| |
The Dubai Government’s debt will have tripled to $30 billion compared to a year ago by the end of 2009, Fitch Ratings said yesterday.
Fitch added that Dubai’s debt would be approaching 40 per cent of gross domestic product.
The ratings agency downgraded two Dubai state-linked companies on concern over how the local and/or federal governments would support the firms.
Dubai Holding Commercial Operations Group and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) were both downgraded from ‘A+’ to ‘A-’ on “Fitch’s view that the credit profiles of the [Dubai and UAE governments] have weakened and lower certainty as to how any government support may be provided”.
“The Emirate of Dubai’s creditworthiness is weakening as obligations of its wider public sector migrate to the sovereign balance sheet,” Fitch said.
“The corporate sector, including state-controlled companies, remains under financial pressure amid the global economic downturn and is going through an ongoing process of rationalisation.
“However, the capacity of the Dubai Government to support the corporate sector is constrained by its small and narrow revenue base and limited financing flexibility,” the agency added.
Fitch said the Dubai Government’s plans to launch the second tranche of a $20 billion bond issuance remained unclear, with no indication of when this would take place or possible buyers for the bonds.
The agency also put Abu Dhabi’s telco Etisalat on ‘ratings watch negative’, saying any downgrade would likely be by one grade and this would be decided in the next two weeks.
|
| |
Source:www.7days.ae |
news |
| |
Email this article | Printer Friendly Version |
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
| Current Events |
 |
|
| DubaiGetaway |
 |
|
| Featured Links |
| |
|
|
|
