Net profit at Emaar Malls remained nearly static during the first three months of the year compared with a year earlier as rents remained flat in some of Dubai’s most popular shopping destinations.
Emaar Malls, the owner of Dubai’s biggest shopping mall the Dubai Mall, said on Sunday net profit for the first three months of 2017 stood at Dh539 million, up just 2 per cent compared with the same period a year earlier. The net profit results beat analysts’ estimates, of an average of Dh528m, compiled by Bloomberg.
The company, which also owns and operates Dubai Marina Mall, Souk Al Bahar, Gold & Diamond Park and some community shopping centres, said that total rental income for the period stood at Dh836 million, roughly the same as it had been during the same period a year earlier and slightly lower than analysts forecast.
The company said that more than 34 million shoppers had visited Emaar Malls shopping centres in the first three months of the year, an increase of 10 per cent over the same period last year.
“We are committed to driving the growth of the malls and retail sector through our assets, and to provide customer-centric experiences by leveraging digital technologies,” said Mohamed Alabbar, the chairman of Emaar Malls and Emaar Properties.
“Through our ongoing expansion of our malls and by developing new retail precincts, we are focused on creating long-term value for our stakeholders as well as offering memorable retail and leisure experiences for residents and visitors to the UAE.”
Emaar Malls said that occupancy levels across Emaar Malls’ assets averaged 96 per cent during the first three months of the year.
The news comes as shopping malls across the UAE are struggling against the dual effects of a slowing economy brought about from a fall in the price of oil and the strong US dollar, to which the UAE dirham is pegged, that makes it more expensive for many tourists to visit the country.
“This is Emaar Malls slowest year-on-year growth rate since the first quarter of 2015,” said Mai Attia, an analyst at Cairo-based EFG Hermes Securities Brokerage. “The slowdown may be the result of a lower percentage of lease contracts that are up for renewal during the quarter compared with the previous quarters and/or lower contribution from net turnover rent in total revenue.”
lbarnard@thenational.ae
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