Ras Al Khaimah retains A/A-1 rating with stable outlook

S&P expects prudent fiscal policy, strong revenues and a substantial net asset position

Last updated:
2 MIN READ
Stock RAK Ras Al Khaimah skyline
Ras Al Khaimah
Virendra Saklani/Gulf News

Dubai: Ras Al Khaimah has retained its A/A-1 credit rating from S&P Global with a stable outlook, with the agency expecting the government to maintain prudent fiscal and economic policies while preserving a substantial net asset position.

Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - simply click here.

S&P said the emirate’s fiscal position is expected to benefit from strong revenue performance, alongside a strong liquid asset position and continued revenue growth.

The agency also expects revenue growth to accelerate during 2028 and 2029, while the government’s net asset position provides a buffer against potential fiscal pressures.

Fiscal position remains in focus

The stable outlook reflects S&P’s expectation that Ras Al Khaimah Government will continue with its existing approach to fiscal management while maintaining its financial position.

Benoy Kurien, Group Chief Executive Officer at Al Hamra said, "Ras Al Khaimah has spent years building a stable and well-diversified economy, quietly building blocks that instill confidence in residents and investors. The scale and profile of investment coming into the emirate especially in the real estate sector is one of the clearest indicator of that confidence."

Benoy Kurien, Group Chief Executive Officer at Al Hamra

Institutional development highlighted

S&P also pointed to progress in Ras Al Khaimah Government’s long-term efforts to strengthen economic institutions, including the development of the RAK Statistics Center.

The report said the financial and economic flexibility of the wider UAE provides an additional buffer against the impact of regional developments.

Ras Al Khaimah’s economic base is spread across a range of industries, helping the emirate attract businesses ranging from small and medium-sized enterprises to large international companies.

S&P said the combination of continued revenue growth, liquid assets and the government’s net asset position is expected to support the emirate’s fiscal position over the coming years.

Nivetha Dayanand is Assistant Business Editor at Gulf News, covering aviation, financial markets and commodities. A business and financial journalist with a strong interest in multimedia storytelling, she regularly takes complex financial and economic subjects beyond the written word, producing explainer videos that make them easier for a wider audience to understand. Nivetha has interviewed senior policymakers, business leaders and global financial figures both on and off camera. Her past guests include UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Khaled bin Alwaleed Al Saud, a member of the House of Saud and the founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund and Indian ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and N. Chandrababu Naidu. She has also hosted and moderated panels, conferences and awards shows, bringing her newsroom experience to live conversations on business, finance and the economy. An Erasmus Mundus journalism alum, Nivetha is drawn to stories that affect people directly and to reporting that gives a platform to voices that might otherwise go unheard. She was among the first journalists to speak to Petrofac employees in the UAE about unpaid salaries, broke the news of the planned demolition of Dubai’s well-known “Toyota Building”, and helped set the record straight on widely circulated claims that a giant replica of the Moon was coming to Dubai. More recently, her exclusive interview with EDGE Group CEO Hamad Al Marar revealed how the UAE-based defence group deployed its systems along the country’s shore border and established a geofence around the UAE within 48 hours of the February 28 escalation. Prior to joining Gulf News, Nivetha worked at ITP Media, where she helped launch Finance Middle East, a new publication covering the region’s financial sector. Her role spanned reporting and editing, video production, interviews and events. Across print, digital, and video, she focuses on finding the people behind business stories and explaining why those stories matter to the audience reading or watching them.

Sign up for the Daily Briefing

Get the latest news and updates straight to your inbox