Union Properties announces 2011 net loss of Dh1.6b

Dubai: The Dubai developer Union Properties made a net loss of Dh1.6 billion in 2011, as the company continued to suffer from falling property prices in the emirate.

In a brief statement to the Dubai Financial Market this morning, Union Properties said that total assets reduced to Dh9.1 billion while shareholder equity also fell to Dh2.4 billion.

Revenue for the full year stood at Dh4.9 billion compared with Dh2.9 billion in the same period last year, while net operating profit also rose marginally.

Union Properties slumped 8.6 per cent after the announcement, while the developer's shares are down 94 per cent from a 2008 peak.

Earlier this month the developer transferred some 1.1 billion of assets to Emirates NBD, its major shareholder, as part of a Dh3.8 billion debt deal.

Figures for the fourth quarter were not given, but Reuters reported that Union Properties made a fourth-quarter net loss of 68 million dirhams, compared with 779 million dirhams loss a year-ago, according to Reuters calculations based on nine-month earnings.