ABU DHABI- The United Arab Emirates' Securities and Commodities Authority has formed a forensic audit committee to investigate Drake and Scull International , it said in a statement on Thursday.

The committee is investigating "the reasons for [Drake and Scull's] floundering financial position and accumulated losses," it said.

DSI posted a net loss of 4.5 billion dirhams ($1.23 billion)in 2018, which widened from a loss of 1.18 billion dirhams in 2017.

($1 = 3.6728 UAE dirham)

(Reporting by Stanley Carvalho; Writing by Nafisa Eltahir; Editing by Saeed Azhar) ((Nafisa.Eltahir@thomsonreuters.com; +971 56 22 61754;))