(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) Dubai Investments, or DI on Monday said its third-quarter net profit more than trebles as it booked gains in the value of its investment properties.
The company, the largest investment company listed on the Dubai Financial Market, posted third-quarter net profit of Dh81.4 million compared with a profit of Dh24.9 million for the year-ago period, it said in a statement. However, for the first nine months, the company's profit dropped slightly to Dh252 million from Dh264 million reported in the same 2011 period.
During the nine-month period the company, which has been exploring opportunities to divest some of its businesses, reported a total income at Dh1.92 billion compared to Dh1.95 billion reported in the first nine months of 2011. DI's total assets as on September 30, 2012, amounted to Dh13.72 billion compared to Dh13.49 billion in the same period last year, while total liabilities amounted to Dh4.69 billion this year compared to Dh4.44 billion last year.
Khalid bin Kalban, managing director and chief executive officer of the company, said DI has achieved strong results despite the challenging economic conditions.
"Quarter on quarter profit has increased by 227 per cent to reach Dh81.4 million and this underscores the value of DI's diversified asset base. The shift in momentum is becoming more apparent as reflected by the growth in UAE tourism and hospitality sectors and pick up in the real estate market with the overall positivity providing encouraging prospects for the future," he said.
DI, in which sovereign fund Investment Corp of Dubai owns 11.5 per cent stake, said its quarterly profit was mainly boosted by a Dhs60 million gain on fair value of investment properties.
It had booked a fair value gain of Dhs8 million for the same period last year.Revenue for the quarter rose to Dh669.1 million from Dh580.7 million a year-ago. Earlier this year, DI said it was eyeing an exit from some of its businesses and was reviewing such opportunities.
The company, which has interests in several sectors including property and manufacturing, had total assets worth Dh13.7 billion at the end of the third quarter, the statement showed. DI seeks to raise up to Dh1 billion this year through the issue of sukuk, or Islamic bonds, to finance expansion of some manufacturing units and repay debt.
