...November 28, 2023 - Through its diversified portfolio across the printing and writing paper, tissue paper, metal converting, and building materials industries, as well as business and environmental services, among other activities, we expect Emirati conglomerate Ittihad International Investment (Ittihad) will record sales of United Arab Emirates dirham (AED) 10.4 billion and S&P Global Ratings-adjusted EBITDA of AED500 million in 2023. - We consider Ittihad's end-market diversification, favorable cost-positioning in its paper operations, logistic advantages, and highly liquid copper inventories as supportive of the rating. We view the commoditized nature of some of the group's products, the limited size of its stand-alone operations, and the geographic concentration of its assets as offsetting factors. - We assigned our 'B+' long-term issuer credit rating to Ittihad and our 'B+' issue rating to the $350 million sukuk that Ittihad International Ltd. issued in November 2023. The ratings are...
