Britain's top banks look likely to avoid massive losses on Dubai World’s debt pile, but have already seen about £1 billion ($1.5 billion) wiped off profits due to problem loans in Dubai and the region last year, Reuters reported yesterday.
Optimism has grown that Dubai World is nearing a deal with creditors of its $26 billion debt that will see full repayment or only a small ‘haircut’ on loans, compared to a 40 per cent loss rumoured last year.
Yet recent results from UK banks show they have already taken losses from the crisis.
HSBC swung to a $3 million loss in the UAE last year after an $861 million profit in 2008.
Standard Chartered’s bad loans in the Middle East and other South Asia region was $811 million last year from $185 million in 2008.
Barclays’ retail and commercial bad debts in the UAE and India jumped by $387 million last year, while Lloyds’ bad debts in the Middle East and Latin America hit $105 million from almost nothing.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai Supreme Fiscal Comm-ittee, said on Friday that Dubai World was trying to separate the “bad business” units from its good businesses.
» full story
