Sodic to develop West Cairo land

Egypt's Sodic, the country's third-biggest listed developer, has agreed with the authorities to develop projects on its land bank in West Cairo within three years, in a move that protects the assets from possible legal challenge. Sodic, a luxury property developer, has been spared much of the legal uncertainty over ownership of its land bank that has hit the country's real estate sector and deepened following President Hosni Mubarak's ouster. The firm agreed with the authorities that, in order to keep its land in West Cairo safe, it would speed up construction on projects there and deliver within the new timeframe, it said in a statement Thursday. "We view the event positively as it effectively removes a legal overhang on Sodic's land bank in West Cairo," investment bank EFG-Hermes said. "The agreement could help Sodic increase the appeal of its off-plan products, which are now free of legal risks pertaining to the land," the note said, adding the deal could help limit cancellations at the project, Westown. Fitch Ratings affirmed DP World's long-term issuer default rating (IDR) at ‘BBB-', with a stable outlook. Fitch has also affirmed the senior unsecured rating at ‘BBB-' and the short-term IDR at ‘F3'. The sukuk unsecured trust certificates issued by DP World Sukuk Limited have been affirmed at ‘BBB-'. In a statement, the agency said: "DP World's ratings reflect its strong position as one of the largest global container terminal port operators, with a geographically diversified portfolio of assets in high growth emerging markets and key locations. Additional positive factors include the relatively high remaining average life of its concessions, its record of sustained operating cash flow generation and strong liquidity position." Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) Thursday said it will pay shareholders a dividend of 67 Bahraini fils (Dh6.50) a share for fiscal year 2011, after the metal producer racked up record sales and production figures in the 12-month period. The dividend will be payable from March 15 to Alba shareholders on record as of March 8, it said in a statement. The company went public in November 2010. In February, Alba said profit last year rose 53 per cent to $564 million from $368 million in 2010. "2011 is a breakthrough year for Alba. It will be marked as a year in which the company achieved a sound financial performance underpinned by healthy cash flows as well as the highest metal production in the company's 40-year history," Alba's Chairman Mahmoud Hashim Al Kooheji said Thursday. National Central Cooling Co (Tabreed) was started at Al Ramz Securities with an "underweight" recommendation and a price estimate of 96 fils. "Tabreed's recent price behaviour and demand pattern could be consistent with leakage of a potential entry of a strategic investor or of an entity vying for controlling interest," Al Ramz said in a note yesterday. "We believe that it rose so swiftly and so huge that its performance could not be fully justified by fundamentals alone and could also have overlooked the inherent risks attached." Qatar's Doha Bank has issued a $500 million (Dh1.8 billion), five-year bond carrying a coupon of 3.5 per cent, after getting strong demand from investors, a banker familiar with the transaction said Thursday. The bond has been priced to yield 3.729 per cent, the banker, who declined to be identified, told Zawya Dow Jones. Final pricing at 262.5 basis points over mid swaps was much tighter than initial guidance of 287.5 basis points over mid swaps. Book runners for the issue included JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley. Doha Bank met investors in Asia and Europe between March 1 and 6. Doha Bank Chief Executive Raghavan Seetharaman told Zawya Dow Jones in January that the lender would sell $500 million of bonds "soon". Issuers from across the Middle East have tapped debt markets in increasing numbers in recent months. Emirates NBD, one of the biggest lenders in the Middle East, sold 750 million yuan (Dh435 million) of offshore yuan-denominated bonds, said one of the banks involved in the deal on Monday.