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S&P Upgrades Arab Orient 
to ‘A’ Stable Rating

DUBAI - Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services upgraded Arab Orient Insurance Company to ‘A’ with a stable outlook removing the CreditWatch, placed on May 13.

In a Press statement issued on Thursday, the insurance firm stated that the upgrade was a result of a review of Al Futtaim’s credit strength carried out by international ratings agency.

Omar Elamin, Senior Managing Director, Arab Orient Insurance Company, or AOIC, said: “This is the highest interactive rating awarded to a national insurance company in the UAE and it further endorses our market leading position in the country.”

AOIC is the only fully ‘A’ rated insurance company in the UAE and one of only three in the Middle East. The other two companies are based in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. “We originally placed the ratings on AOIC on CreditWatch with negative implications owing to our concerns about the deterioration in the Dubai economy and the impact of this on the company’s owner, the Al Futtaim group,” explained S&P’s credit analyst Nigel Bond in a statement issued from London on Monday.

“Following a review of Al Futtaim’s credit strength, we do not believe that any change in the ratings on AOIC is warranted, as there is negligible likelihood of the group requiring financial support from its insurance subsidiary,” he added.

S&P said its ratings on AOIC reflect the company’s strong capitalisation and consistently very strong and stable earnings, accompanied by prudential asset management with very strong liquidity. business@khaleejtimes.com