Aabar suffers Dh1.38bn Q2 loss on derivatives

Aabar Investments, the Abu Dhabi fund in the process of converting to a private joint stock company, suffered a Dh1.38 billion ($375.8 million) loss for the second-quarter, hurt by a surge in derivatives liabilities.

The state-owned firm, also the largest shareholder in German automaker Daimler, made a net profit of Dh202 million for the first half of the year, it said in a statement to the bourse.

Aabar did not provide any earnings numbers for the second-quarter. Reuters calculated the second-quarter loss based on previous financial statements. The company made a net profit of Dh1.58 billion in the first-quarter, helped by derivatives income.

Aabar, which raised its minority buyout price after pressure from the regulator, said its shareholders are meeting on Sunday to decide on the conversion of the company to a private joint stock firm and delist from the Abu Dhabi bourse.

In its earnings statement, Aabar said derivative liabilities in the quarter increased by Dh1.65 billion in the second-quarter to Dh5.08 billion.

Comprehensive income for the second-quarter stood at Dh990 million and total shareholders equity as at June 30 was Dh11.30 billion, Aabar said.

Profit on equity investments, which are marked to market on a periodic basis, stood at Dh1.025 billion for the quarter ended June 30, Aabar said.

In June, Aabar, which bought a 4.99 per cent stake in Italian banking giant UniCredit, set plans to delist from the bourse and convert itself to a private joint stock company.

It later decided to raise the offer price to minority shareholders from Dh1.45 per share to Dh1.95 after pressure from UAE government officials.

International Petroleum Investment Corporation, or IPIC, wholly owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, is the majority shareholder in Abu Dhabi-listed Aabar.

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