.
Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) posted the best-ever revenues and net profit in the first half of 2022, driven by the strong performance of all of its subsidiaries.
Dubai’s sovereign wealth fund’s revenues jumped 61 per cent to record Dh121.1 billion revenues while profits skyrocketed around ten times to Dh14.8 billion in H1.
The holding company announced Dh75.2 billion in revenues and Dh1.4 billion in net profit during the first half of 2021.
ICD owns stakes in many of Dubai’s flagship entities such as Emirates airline, budget carrier flydubai Emirates NBD bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, Borse Dubai, Enoc, Emaar, Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubal Holding and Emirates Global Aluminium among others.
Dubai economy has bounced back strongly after the pandemic, led by aviation, hospitality, MICE, travel and tourism and real estate sectors. In addition, Expo 2020, which concluded in March, also ended on a high note with more than 24 million visits during the six-month long exhibition.
ICD said its entities in transportation returned to profitability in a significant turnaround while the oil and gas firm’s profitability improved by 190 per cent, and the other segment increased by 129 per cent, buoyed by record earnings from aluminium production and strong fundamentals in the real estate and hospitality sectors.
Sheikh Hamdan chairs board meeting
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, Chairman of ICD, chaired the board’s meeting in the presence of Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Vice-Chairman of ICD. The board approved the consolidated financial results for the six months that ended June 30, 2022.
Sheikh Hamdan attributed the exceptional performance to the vision and encouragement of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai one of the primary champions of global economic growth.
“The 61 per cent growth in ICD’s revenues and a more than ten times increase in its profits during the first half of 2022, despite the global economic slowdown and uncertainty worldwide, reflects the resilience and robustness of Dubai’s economy and the prudence of its fiscal policies. The exceptional results are a manifestation of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid’s vision to ensure that Dubai remains at the forefront of championing global economic recovery,” said Sheikh Hamdan.
“We are proud to record ICD’s best-ever financial performance during the first half of a year, underscoring Dubai’s position as one of the world’s most dynamic, resilient, and future-ready cities. By embracing change and innovation, Dubai offers an exceptional and exemplary model to emulate for shaping the new world economic paradigm.
“We will continue to foster innovation, especially in future-focused sectors, while driving efficiency and implementing confidence-boosting measures in our traditional economic pillars to set new benchmarks and enhance Dubai’s global competitiveness and status as the world’s premier business and investment hub,” he said.
Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, managing director, ICD, said the group’s expansion accelerated despite the global economic slowdown, thanks to favourable local and regional economic momentum.
“Our companies redeployed operational capacity whilst maintaining a strong discipline on costs. Despite the challenging global economic outlook, ICD maintains a strong balance sheet, is confident of the growth potential of its businesses and will remain cautious and selective in how it deploys new capital whilst exploring new investment opportunities,” he added.
ICD’s assets grew to a record Dh1.136 trillion during H1 2022 as compared to Dh1.1 trillion at the end of last year, on the back of a much higher level of activity overall. The group’s liabilities were up marginally to Dh887.5 billion, while borrowings and lease liabilities slightly declined.
The group’s share of equity increased by 4.8 per cent to Dh199.8 billion.
