Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013

(This story was originally published Monday.)

DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Dubai Holding Commercial Operations Group, a conglomerate linked to the emirate's ruler, on Monday gave an upbeat outlook for this year after posting a sharp jump in 2012 profit on lower impairments.

DHCOG, a unit of Dubai Holding, said net profit for the 12-month period soared to 1.19 billion dirhams ($324 million) from AED204 million in the year before period, according to financial statements posted on the Nasdaq Dubai bourse website.

The company booked AED7 million as impairment expenses in 2012, sharply down from AED2.35 billion a year earlier. Full-year revenues rose to AED9.17 billion from AED8.83 billion in 2011.

DHCOG owns TECOM, a free zones company, and Jumeirah Group, the hospitality firm that manages the Burj Al Arab hotel, among a large portfolio of other holdings. It also owns stakes in telecom operators Du (DU.DFM) and Axiom.

"Dubai's fundamentals have once again proven their resilience, underpinned by the positive economic indicators and trends seen across various sectors," the company said. "This positive improvement has increased investor confidence, and will continue to do so, resulting in long term stability and profitability," it noted, adding that the outlook for its subsidiaries "continues to show promise."

The company has been further reducing its debt, including the repayment of a $500 million bond in February last year. Its total debt was reduced by AED1.1 billion in 2012 and now stands at AED11.73 billion.

"This remains an important part of our strategy and we will continue to address our financial commitments," Ahmad Bin Byat, DHCOG's chief executive, said in a statement accompanying the results.

Total assets fell to AED86.33 billon at the end of 2012 from AED97.38 billion a year before, according to DHCOG's financial statements.

Dubai Group, another Dubai Holding subsidiary, is said to be nearing the completion of its talks to restructure around $10 billion of debt. DHCOG is not involved in that deal, and is considered to be in a stronger financial position thanks to assets such as Jumeirah and Tecom which weathered the financial crisis.

Write to Nicolas Parasie at nicolas.parasie@dowjones.com

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

02-04-13 0348GMT