Keeping a showboat on course

Some are calling it prudent financial management. Others dismiss it as economic showboating. Either way, the Dubai government repaid another $1 billion of debt this week, as it tries to calm fears of widespread defaults.

State investment firm Dubai World insists it could have refinanced the loan - used to buy a stake in US gambling group MGM Mirage. It repaid in full because the new terms offered were "uncompetitive". Two other state-backed companies repaid a similar amount in the past month.

Sir Win Bischoff, chairman of Citigroup, seems to have been won over. This week he said the bank had raised $8 billion for Dubai-based companies over the past year, and talked of "our positive outlook on Dubai in particular".

All this is much-needed good news for the city-state, given recent rumblings about the creditworthiness of the government, and the companies it owns.

Credit-default swaps on flagship investment arm Dubai Holding climbed to about 1100 points last month - up from about 250 in March. Islamic bonds of state property developer Nakheel are trading near 80 cents in the dollar. Neighbouring Abu Dhabi has bailed out two Dubai-based mortgage lenders.

So it'll take more than a couple of billion dollars to convince traders in London and New York that Dubai is solvent: the government and its companies owe about $80 billion. Perhaps more significant, then, is Dubai's pledge to get a credit rating.

For years, mostly in vain, investors have called for more transparency from Dubai Inc. But the credit crunch and bursting property bubble mean record-breaking skyscrapers are no longer enough to show financial strength. Opening the books to Moody's and Standard & Poor's may now prove more effective than building another seven-star hotel.

PITY the wealthiest Arabs, who've seen $50 billion wiped off their combined fortunes this year - a drop of 12%. The annual Arabian Business magazine rich list ranks Abdulaziz Al Ghurair as the richest man in Dubai, with $7.8 billion (the list excludes royalty). The chairman and major shareholder of Mashreqbank escaped relatively unscathed, losing just $200 million.

FIRST the good news for HSBC's Dubai investment banking team. It's still the leading house in the Middle East, generating $56 million of fees so far this year, according to Dealogic. Next, the bad news. The regional revenue pot has almost halved over the past year, to $763 million.