Dubai’s Emaar Malls Q1 net profit rises 32 pct

Dubai’s Emaar Malls, a unit of Emaar Properties, reported a 32 percent rise in first-quarter net profit on Wednesday after it attracted more visitors to its shopping centers and raised rents.

Emaar Malls made a net profit of 433 million dirhams ($117.9 million) in the three months to March 31, the company said in a statement. That compares with a profit of 329 million dirhams in the same period a year earlier.

Quarterly revenue was 735 million dirhams, up 21 percent year-on-year.

Emaar Malls attracted about 31 million visitors in the first quarter, 7 percent higher than a year ago, while lease renewal rates for its outlets rose 26 percent.

“Emaar Malls is now focused on its next level of growth through aggressive expansion in Dubai and international markets,” Mohamed Alabbar, chairman of Emaar Malls and Emaar Properties, said in the statement.

“Our malls business is a strong contributor to Emaar’s recurring revenues.”

Parent firm Emaar Properties owns 84.6 percent stake of Emaar Malls, having floated 15.4 percent of its subsidiary last September. At the time, the 5.8 billion dirham share sale was the Gulf’s largest since 2008.