ruserious
21st Oct 2009, 06:44
Pay rises might be hard to find this year :uhoh:
Dubai hits the road to seek help with $80b debt (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/property/news/article.cfm?c_id=8&objectid=10604383)
Dubai has been vastly ambitious but some projects are in trouble after the downturn. Photo / AP
DUBAI - The Dubai Government is planning to meet potential international investors this week as it tries to dig itself out from under at least US$80 billion ($106 billion) of debt.
Mitsubishi UFJ Securities International said that Dubai's department of finance would meet fixed income and Islamic investors.
At least some of the meetings were expected to include the department's top official, Abdulrahman al-Saleh, Mitsubishi spokeswoman Julie Horiuchi said.
Little has been seen of Al-Saleh since he was installed as the emirate's finance chief in May after the surprise ouster of his predecessor.
Mitsubishi, Dubai Islamic Bank, Standard Chartered and UBS Investment Bank are arranging the roadshow meetings on Dubai's behalf, according to Horiuchi.
She said the meetings would begin in Hong Kong, and likely include stops in Singapore, Dubai, London and Frankfurt.
A spokesman for the finance department did not add any details.
Dubai has struggled to find investors willing to help it repay or refinance its debt. Officials have said the debt stands at about US$80 billion for the Government and its numerous state-linked companies known informally as Dubai Inc. Analysts say the number could be higher.
Convincing international lenders to provide fresh financing could alleviate some of the pressure on the once booming city-state, which has seen its core sectors of trade, tourism, financial services and real estate hit hard by the economic downturn.
Dubai this year turned to the Emirates federal government in oil-rich Abu Dhabi for a US$10 billion bond issue that many observers regarded as a government bailout.
Dubai's ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said last month he is "not worried" when asked about the city-state's finances. Yet concerns remain.
A senior Middle East analyst at credit rating firm Standard & Poor's last week said that a support fund Dubai created to help pay its debts had "insufficient" resources to cover the billions of dollars it has coming due, putting renewed pressure on the emirate to find cash.
Investors looking for assurances of Dubai's creditworthiness are eager to see if and how the sheikdom's state-owned developer Nakheel will repay a US$3.5 billion Islamic bond due in December.
The developer's parent company last week announced it shed 15 per cent of staff as part of a broader reorganisation effort, leaving the company with fewer than 70,000 employees.
On Monday, MEED magazine reported that Nakheel repaid a separate bond worth US$1.2 billion. Nakheel declined to comment.
- AP
Dubai hits the road to seek help with $80b debt (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/property/news/article.cfm?c_id=8&objectid=10604383)
Dubai has been vastly ambitious but some projects are in trouble after the downturn. Photo / AP
DUBAI - The Dubai Government is planning to meet potential international investors this week as it tries to dig itself out from under at least US$80 billion ($106 billion) of debt.
Mitsubishi UFJ Securities International said that Dubai's department of finance would meet fixed income and Islamic investors.
At least some of the meetings were expected to include the department's top official, Abdulrahman al-Saleh, Mitsubishi spokeswoman Julie Horiuchi said.
Little has been seen of Al-Saleh since he was installed as the emirate's finance chief in May after the surprise ouster of his predecessor.
Mitsubishi, Dubai Islamic Bank, Standard Chartered and UBS Investment Bank are arranging the roadshow meetings on Dubai's behalf, according to Horiuchi.
She said the meetings would begin in Hong Kong, and likely include stops in Singapore, Dubai, London and Frankfurt.
A spokesman for the finance department did not add any details.
Dubai has struggled to find investors willing to help it repay or refinance its debt. Officials have said the debt stands at about US$80 billion for the Government and its numerous state-linked companies known informally as Dubai Inc. Analysts say the number could be higher.
Convincing international lenders to provide fresh financing could alleviate some of the pressure on the once booming city-state, which has seen its core sectors of trade, tourism, financial services and real estate hit hard by the economic downturn.
Dubai this year turned to the Emirates federal government in oil-rich Abu Dhabi for a US$10 billion bond issue that many observers regarded as a government bailout.
Dubai's ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said last month he is "not worried" when asked about the city-state's finances. Yet concerns remain.
A senior Middle East analyst at credit rating firm Standard & Poor's last week said that a support fund Dubai created to help pay its debts had "insufficient" resources to cover the billions of dollars it has coming due, putting renewed pressure on the emirate to find cash.
Investors looking for assurances of Dubai's creditworthiness are eager to see if and how the sheikdom's state-owned developer Nakheel will repay a US$3.5 billion Islamic bond due in December.
The developer's parent company last week announced it shed 15 per cent of staff as part of a broader reorganisation effort, leaving the company with fewer than 70,000 employees.
On Monday, MEED magazine reported that Nakheel repaid a separate bond worth US$1.2 billion. Nakheel declined to comment.
- AP