Gulf General Investment Company (GGICO), said the company's consolidated net profit has risen to Dh590 million ($161 million) from Dh555 million ($151 million).

Announcing the company's unaudited preliminary financial report for the 2008, Mohamed Abdalla Juma Al Sari, GGICO managing director said the company has posted an year-on-year growth of six per cent.

The board of directors have proposed a 35 per cent bonus shares and a mandatory convertible bond of Dh500 million at a meeting held on Wednesday.

The board also decided to convene the annual general meeting on March 30.

"2008 was unusually challenging with the spreading of global crisis into the Middle East by the end of third quarter. Our diversification into core industrial and manufacturing sectors in over 30 subsidiaries helped us to withstand the crisis and come out with a remarkable result,” commented Al Sari.

"We added 12 companies during the year, six of them through acquisition and the rest through Greenfield development."

"However, 2009 will be the year of consolidation in our core industrial and manufacturing activities and we do not have plans for new acquisition during this year," Al Sari added.-TradeArabia News Service