UAE Central Bank: Dubai World Now Stable

The Dubai government's flagship corporation, Dubai World, is now in a stable, healthy situation, the deputy governor of the UAE's central bank said. "Dubai [World] has been able to set up a strategy to address the crisis," Mohamed Ali Bin Zayed told reporters on the sidelines of an Islamic banking forum being held in the Jordanian Dead Sea resort.

Dubai shocked investors last November when it announced it wanted a debt freeze on the obligations of Dubai World, one of the companies it owns. The conglomerate has US$26 billion of debt, and total liabilities close to US$60 billion. Abu Dhabi, the neighboring emirate which is also part of UAE, provided Dubai with US$10 billion in funds to help address the crisis.

Creditors to Dubai World are awaiting a formal standstill request or restructuring proposal after it said that it would use some of the funds available to finance some of its needs. "Dubai World has been able in a short time to set up a timetable to deal with the crisis," he said, adding that the institution has been able successfully to restructure its creditors' debts. He gave no further details.- Zawya