DP World profits reach $1.2 billion as port operator expands

Global port operator DP World profits rose by 7 per cent to nearly USD 1.2 billion in 2017 as the company expands in India, Brazil, the Horn of Africa and other parts of the world.

The company announced on Thursday that revenue climbed 13 percent to USD 4.7 billion last year, compared to $4.16 billion in 2016.

The Dubai-based company, one of the world's largest port operators, says it plans investments this year of $1.4 billion, mainly in the United Arab Emirates, Ecuador, Somaliland, South Korea, Mozambique and Egypt.

DP World, majority owned by the Dubai government, seeks arbitration over Djibouti's seizure last month of a container terminal there following its expansion in Somaliland.

Djibouti's port is crucial to its landlocked-neighbor Ethiopia, which recently became a 19 per cent shareholder in Somaliland's Berbera port.