Dubai to go on road to ease investor fears
The Dubai government, which is restructuring $23.5bn (£15.1bn) in debt, will launch a roadshow for fixed-income investors in Asia starting on 26 August, a statement said.
The plan follows a similar program for European investors in June, as part of the government’s strategy for “providing regular updates to both existing and prospective fixed income investors around the world.”
The roadshow was a non-deal one, indicating no immediate bond issue.
The meetings, organized by HSBC and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, which are scheduled to take place on August 26 in Hong Kong and August 27 in Singapore, the statement said.
Dubai launched a $6.5bn bond programme last October, made up of $4bn euro medium term notes and a $2.5bn Islamic loan. It placed almost $2 billion in five-year Islamic bonds in late October.
Dubai’s troubles shut international debt markets to primary issuers from the region for months, but several firms, notably Saudi ones, have tapped the market this year. Despite the uptick in issuance, pricing remains a worry.
In April, Dubai utility DEWA DEWATF.UL raised $1 billion in an issue that offered a coupon of 8.5 per cent.
The Dubai finance ministry’s 2014 Islamic bond was off 0.35 points to a mid-point of 94.6, with a yield of 7.86 percent.
The Gulf Arab emirate is grappling with the debt restructuring of its core state-linked firms in the wake of a long boom that abruptly ended in the collapse of its property market.
Last year, Dubai stunned global markets with news it would delay debt payments linked to its flagship conglomerate Dubai World. The firm said in May it had reached a deal in principle to restructure $23.5bn with core bank creditors.