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 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - A top Dubai finance official said the emirate fully expected fallout from its debt problems and assured foreign creditors that Dubai World's request to postpone payment on some of its $60 billion in debt was "carefully planned."
The comments by Sheik Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, the chairman of Dubai's Supreme Fiscal Committee, came as world markets reacted in shock to what some analysts indicated amounted to a default Dubai World, the city-state's key engine of growth with interests ranging from ports to real estate.
Ahmed said the emirate's leadership thought long and hard, weighing creditors' interests, before announcing they were seeking a "standstill" on Dubai World's debt until at least May.
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