Property group Africa Israel posts big Q4 loss on Russian unit
Loss of NIS 851 million resulted from reevaluation of real estate assets in Russia due to 'challenging situation' in country, says chief executive.
Israeli real estate developer Africa Israel Investments posted a huge loss in the fourth quarter due to a revaluation of real estate projects at its Russian unit, AFI Development.
The company said on Monday it had a net loss of 851 million shekels ($214 million) in the quarter, compared with a profit of 3 million a year earlier. The loss from a revaluation of investment property at AFI Development, a Russian real estate developer, totalled $220 million in the quarter.
Revenue in the quarter slipped to 1.37 billion shekels from 1.64 billion a year earlier.
"The challenging situation in Russia ... negatively impacted the value of real estate assets of subsidiary AFI Development," Chief Executive Avraham Novogrocki said. "The geopolitical situation is the main reason for this year's loss."
One of AFI Development's key assets is the Afimall City shopping centre in Moscow.
In December Africa Israel, controlled by billionaire diamond dealer Lev Leviev, said the crisis in Russia and the sharp depreciation in the rouble would likely hurt its business in Russia. ($1 = 3.9743 shekels)
