Dubai: Emaar is planning to sell its $164 million (Dh602.2 million) stake in RSH Holdings, a Singapore retailer, according to Reuters.
The sale of the stake aims to boost cash and shed non-core assets.
An Emaar spokesman, while not denying the claim, told Gulf News, "RSH is a listed company on the Sing-apore Stock Exchange. Any information requiring public disclosure relating to RSH will be disclosed to SGX as and when appropriate."
Emaar took effective control of RSH last year, owning a 30 per cent stake in a joint venture with India's MGF Group. It had to increase its stake to 61.3 per cent after taking control of the debt owed by the joint venture firm when it defaulted on a loan.
According to Reuters, Emaar has hired DBS to advise the sale which is being undertaken because the partners do not want to pursue the retail business.
"The competitive advantage of Emaar's retail operations is the access to the company's developments and thus real estate in prime locations," says Roy Cherry, SHUAA Capital vice-president for research, told Reuters.
"Emaar retail doesn't need to own retail companies. Its focus should be on partnerships within Emaar malls ... this is a positive re-allocation of assets. Emaar would be exiting a non-core investment and boosting its cash buffer," Cherry said.
Emaar is 31.2 per cent owned by the Dubai government with about Dh8.1 billion in loans and borrowings outstanding as of September 2009, half of which are due this year. The firm posted a 53 per cent rise in third-quarter net profit to Dh655 million.
