EMAAR Properties Takes top Place in First Gulf Webranking Survey

DUBAI, UAE - Real estate giant EMAAR takes top slot in on-line consultancy Hallvarsson & Halvarsson’s (H&H) inaugural “GCC Webranking” survey. Abu Dhabi National Energy Company came second with ZAIN third. Bahrain is the GCC country with the highest average score in the region, closely followed by the United Arab Emirates.

For the first time H&H Webranking has included the GCC in its annual survey of corporate websites. Eighty-five listed companies, measured by market capitalization, in five GCC countries were ranked. Sites were assessed according to 140 criteria, derived from H&H’s annual survey of business journalists, analysts and investors to identify what information and functionality they value most highly from a listed company’s corporate website.

“The number of listed companies in the Gulf has increased over the past few years and the region is becoming increasingly interesting for international investors. This is why we have included the GCC in our annual Webranking survey. Any company looking to compete on an equal footing for international investor attention needs to utilise high quality online communication,” said Staffan Lindgren, Executive Partner of H&H. “EMAAR wins the 2009 H&H Webranking in the Gulf as they present themselves on-line through a website that best fulfils the requirements for a corporate website’s target audiences. In particular, EMAAR’s website has a well developed Investor Relations section offering information that is in demand by the capital market, such as presentations, financial figures and a lot of share-related information.”

Rank Company Score

1 EMAAR 34.25 2 Abu Dhabi National Energy Company 33.75 3 ZAIN 33.5 4 Sorouh Real Estate 33 5 Hikma Pharmaceuticals 32.5 6 SABIC 30.5 7 Al Khalij Commercial Bank (Al Khaliji) 28.75 8 Qatar Telecom 28 9= DP World 26.5 9= Gulf Finance House 26.5

The rankings show that some Gulf region companies are using the online medium for financial disclosure reasonably effectively. However, the spread of results within the region ranges from 0 to 34.25 points. This indicates that the level of website performance differs substantially, with some companies performing poorly.

The Gulf average is below the European average, 18.5 compared to 50.3 (average of 700 European companies in H&H Webranking 2008).

Bahrain is the highest average scoring country in the region, although there is no significant difference between the five countries covered by this survey. Average ratings were as follows:

Rank Country Average score

1 Bahrain 20.55 2 United Arab Emirates 19.82 3 Qatar 18.38 4 Saudi Arabia 17.51 5 Kuwait 16.03

Areas with greatest room for improvement are “Financial Information”, “Corporate Governance” and “Financial Calendar” -all areas increasingly important for the international capital markets.

Commenting on the results of the survey, Nicholas Lunt, Gulf Region MD of H&H’s sister company, M: Communications, added: “It’s important to place these results in the context of the wider region and to understand that local and south Asian investors are a critical audience for listed companies in the GCC. Most GCC listed companies are head and shoulders above their regional peers when it comes to Investor Relations (IR) and PR. It’s important to weld together methodologies that are appropriate for their core target audiences with the best elements of international best practice. For example the way Aldar Properties uses video and photography on its website is an excellent example of a company presenting a human yet dynamic face to its stakeholders, something that I know is particularly valued in the Gulf Region”.

For more information on the GCC Webranking survey and report contact:

Nicholas Lunt, M: Communications - Gulf: +971-55-2700216

Source: M Communications (London) Ltd

For more information on the GCC Webranking survey and report contact: Nicholas Lunt, M: Communications - Gulf: +971-55-2700216