DIFC, June 14, 2010 -- Moody's Investors Service today held its fifth annual GCC Credit Risk Conference at the Fairmont Bab el-Bahr Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

Moody's top Middle-East-focused analysts from its local office in Dubai as well as from its offices in Limassol, London and Paris today gave in-depth presentations at this one-day conference aimed at regional investors.

"Middle Eastern countries have weathered the financial crisis, albeit to varying degrees," said Mr Jehad el-Nakla, General Manager of Moody's Middle East, who gave the opening address at the conference. "The Middle East in general and the oil-producing countries specifically have continued to report improvements in their economic fundamentals, supported by steadily improving oil prices which have stabilized at around US$80 per barrel."

"However, throughout this volatile period, Moody's has remained at the forefront in monitoring the creditworthiness of regional issuers of debt.

The rating agency has also published numerous timely and detailed Special Comments about developments in the region, reflecting Moody's continued staunch commitment to the Middle East," says Mr el-Nakla,

The topics of the presentations by senior members of Moody's rating groups were as follows:

- "Middle East Sovereigns: A View from the top", Tristan Cooper, Moody's Head Analyst for Middle East Sovereigns.

- "Middle East Banking Outlook", by Mardig Haladjian, General Manager of Moody's Limassol Office and Manager of Moody's Middle Eastern banking team.

- "The paradox of Islamic banking", by Anouar Hassoune, Vice President -- Senior Credit Officer in Moody's Financial Institutions Group and Moody's specialist on Islamic Banking.

- "The GCC corporate credit landscape", by Myriam Durand, Managing Director and Head of Moody's EMEA Corporate Finance Group, followed by "Corporate industry snapshots: from real estate to holding companies -- and key credit drivers", by Martin Kohlhase, AVP -- Analyst in Moody's EMEA Corporate Finance Group.

- "Funding infrastructure in the GCC -- the emergence of new precedents", by Andrew Davison, Senior Vice President in Moody's Infrastructure Finance Group.

- "Securitisation and Islamic Finance", by Khalid Howladar, Vice President - Senior Credit Officer in Moody's Structured Finance Group and Moody's specialist on Islamic securitisations.

Additionally, Moody's held a panel discussion on "Insolvency, restructuring and recovery in the GCC" which was moderated by Khalid Howladar, The discussion included the following guest speakers: David Silver, Partner at Fullbright & Jaworski; Eli Chahin, Director of Alix Partners; Martin Rudge, Head of Specialised Corporate Loans, Corporate & Investment Banking Division at National Bank of Abu Dhabi; and Thuwaini Al Thuwaini, Senior Manager of the Structuring Team at Rasameel.


- Ends -

About MOODY'S
Moody's is an essential component of the global capital markets, providing credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody's Corporation

(NYSE: MCO) is the parent company of Moody's Investors Service, which provides credit ratings and research covering debt instruments and securities, and Moody's Analytics, which encompasses the growing array of Moody's non-ratings businesses including risk management software for financial institutions, quantitative credit analysis tools, economic research and data services, data and analytical tools for the structured finance market, and training and other professional services. The Corporation, which reported revenue of $1.8 billion in 2009, employs approximately 4,000 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 27 countries. Further information is available at www.moodys.com.

For more information, please contact:
DIFC
Jehad el-Nakla
General Manager
Moody's Middle East Ltd.
Telephone: +971-44-01-9536

Frankfurt
Andreas Naumann
Senior Vice President
Business Development Group
Moody's Deutschland GmbH
JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456
SUBSCRIBERS: 44 20 7772 5454

The new report, entitled "Arabian Gulf Corporates: Catalysts for Stabilisation Appear Illusive as 2012 Wall of Maturity Looms", is now available on www.moodys.com.

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