Majid Al Futtaim, the property, retail and entertainment holding company that owns Mall of the Emirates in Dubai, said its first-half revenue rose 14 per cent as it expands its business at home and into other Middle East countries such as Egypt and Oman.
Revenues rose to Dh12.8 billion in the first half while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 12 per cent to Dh1.8bn, the Dubai-based company said.
The biggest gains came from its retail unit that owns and operates the Carrefour supermarket franchise. Retail sales rose 15 per cent to Dh10.5bn, it said. The company did not disclose its net profit for the first half.
“We continue to make significant progress with growth in the retail and leisure markets across the region,” said Iyad Malas, Majid Al Futtaim’s chief executive. “In the first half of 2014, we received official endorsement from Egypt’s government for our multibillion Egyptian pound investment plan, we progressed on lucrative land banking opportunities in Saudi Arabia.”
“While Dubai remains the core of our business, these cornerstones in Majid Al Futtaim’s investment strategy in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon underline our confidence in these countries to become investment hubs capable of accommodating major commercial and touristic projects,” he added.
In the UAE, Majid Al Futtaim said it was expanding Mall of the Emirates in a Dh900 million project, which will involve the mall expanding by 25,000 square metres and house a new Vox Cinema complex. During the first half, the company opened 17 new cinema screens at City Centre Muscat and City Centre Qurum in Oman.
Majid Al Futtaim has been operating in Oman since 2001 and is developing a mixed-use project called The Wave, Muscat, with the Omani government.
The company started to build its flagship Mall of Egypt project in Cairo in the first half, and opened Beirut City Centre mall in Lebanon. It also issued its first 10-year US$500 million bond in May, the first 10-year issuance out of Dubai since 2010. It is also the longest corporate tenure for a Dubai company.
“In line with our previously stated goals, this issuance was directed at lengthening the average life of the company’s debt and enabling further portfolio optimisation,” said Shrimati Damal, the head of treasury at Majid Al Futtaim. “It has allowed us to build a credit curve for the company, creating a market reference for future financing. Hence it was a significant milestone for the company.”
mkassem@thenational.ae
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