Top listed firms cut Q1 costs by 10%

Rigorous cost-cutting measures helped the top three listed companies in Dubai reduce their operating cost by more than 10 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period of 2009, Emirates Business research shows.

Between them, the top three companies on the Dubai Financial Market – Emaar Properties, Emirates NBD and Mashreq – spent Dh194m less on SG&A (selling, general and administrative expenses), which includes salaries, commissions and travel expenses for executives and salespeople, advertising costs, and payroll expenses and other operating costs, an analysis of their Q1 financial statements reveals.

Emaar alone saved almost Dh134m, or 32.73 per cent, in SG&A during Q1 2010 compared to Q1 2009, making it the top saver in real terms among the top 20 companies that this paper analysed.

Emirates NBD and Mashreq saved Dh44.7m and Dh15.3m, respectively, in operating costs during the same period, amounting to a saving of 4.78 and 3.2 per cent, respectively. Together, operating expenses for the three giants dropped from Dh1.82bn in Q1 2009 to Dh1.63bn in Q1 2010 – a decline of 10.63 per cent.

A broader study of the expense accounts of the top 20 listed companies on the DFM confirms the cost-saving trend, with 11 of the top 20 spending less in Q1 2010 compared with Q1 2009.