|
Dubai: Kuwait-based International Financial Advisors (IFA) said yesterday it made an annual profit of 80.8 million Kuwaiti dinars (Dh1.1 billion) last year.
The group reported a loss of 24.2 million dinars in 2006. It attributed its unsatisfactory performance that year to factors such as a decline in the Kuwaiti stock market and the political tension between the government and parliament that delayed the implementation of economic reforms.
IFA said it achieved earnings per share of 194 Kuwaiti fils in 2007 compared with a loss of 57 fils per share in 2006.
The shareholder equity grew from 179 million dinars at the end of 2006 to 248 million dinars last year.
Total assets increased to 588 million dinars compared with 422 million dinars at the end of 2006.
Jasem Al Bahar, chairman and CEO, noted that global investment climate has been hit by the ongoing credit crunch.
"In spite of the adverse market conditions around the globe that have affected and are still affecting the investment sector, the company has achieved significant profits. These profits were a result of the strategy adopted by the company since 2002, which was based on two pillars: The first pillar focuses on financial investments and the second pillar focuses on the real estate investments related to hotels and resorts," Al Bahar said.
He said the company is finalising restructuring and merger plans for its group companies, subsidiaries and associate units.
"The project aims to recognise the entities within the group in order to make them better equipped to overcome local, regional and international challenges.
"The restructuring project, which was disclosed at the last shareholders meeting, held in May 2007, focuses on enhancing the specialisation within the group, eliminating redundancies, creating synergies and forming integrated entities that aim to achieve higher profits and returns," he said.
The group subsidiary IFA Hotels and Resorts is a major developer of hospitality projects and is listed on the Kuwait and Johannesburg stock exchanges.
|
