Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum on Tuesday urged citizens of the Gulf emirate to “roll up your sleeves” to support the economy as state-controlled conglomerate Dubai World attempts a massive restructuring of its debt.
In his first public statement since Dubai World said it plans to halt payments for at least the next six months on its $59-billion of borrowings, Sheikh Mohammed said: “Today our economy is one of the largest economies of the world in terms of power and stability.”
Dubai’s qualities give “it the ability to interact positively with the ups and downs in the global economy and provided it with the efficiency for overcoming the crises and for grabbing opportunities,” he said in an address to mark the UAE’s national day on Wednesday.
“I know that love for your country is deeply planted in your hearts. But the highest degree of love is self-giving. So gather your thoughts, light up your minds, roll up your sleeves, work hard and take initiatives, always look forward, and believe that God will not let good work go without reward,” Sheikh Mohammed said, according to a text distributed by state-run WAM news agency.
Speaking to reporters, he stressed that the Dubai government and debt-laden Dubai World are not one and the same.
“Mixing up between the Dubai World group and the government of Dubai is wrong,” the sheikh said, according to state-owned Dubai Television.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, the UAE president, used his own address marking the national day to seek to reassure the world about the state of the economy.
“We would like to comfort everyone that our country today is stronger and better, and that our economy and society are healthy,” WAM quoted him as saying.
“The global financial crisis, though severe, will not make us hesitate or retreat, and will not be an excuse to despair or languish … We will decisively continue implementing our strategies, plans and projects that we have started,” he said.
“We have managed … to cross the most difficult phase of the crisis,” he added.
The president, who is also the ruler of Abu Dhabi emirate that sits on around 95 percent of the UAE’s oil reserves, did not refer directly to Dubai’s debt woes, which have sent jitters around global and local stock markets.
Analysts predict that Abu Dhabi will eventually come to the rescue of its neighbour and speculation is rife about the terms and conditions Sheikh Khalifa might impose.
Abu Dhabi is believed by economists to have the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, which they value at between $400-billion and $500-billion.
Shares on the Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock markets continued to fall in Tuesday, after a Finance Ministry official said Dubai never promised to guarantee Dubai World’s debt and the conglomerate said it wants to talk to creditors about reorganising $26-billion worth of its debt.
The Dubai bourse closed 5,6% lower, swelling its total drop to 12,5% since local markets reopened on Monday, while the index in Abu Dhabi lost another 3,5% for an 11,6% plunge in 48 hours. — AFP