Standard Chartered remains positive on Middle East

Standard Chartered's Middle East and Other South Asia (MESA) operations managed to defy the gloom and post a 25% increase in income over last year. Staff numbers increased as well, and the bank is optimistic about the region's prospects going forward.

The bank's total operating profits rose 13% in 2008, to $4.75bn, driven mainly by a whopping 42% rise in wholesale banking group income. Performance in key markets like Asia, Africa and the Middle East helped these crisis-defying results.

Encouragingly, Standard Chartered continued to invest in staff within the Middle East. Operating expenses swelled by 35%, which it put down to increased expenditure on employees.

It reckons it continued to invest in "skills and expertise" across its sales, trading and financial institutions team. It also says that its wholesale banking division "took advantage of the market dislocation to recruit staff with specialist market and product knowledge".

Peter Sands, Standard Chartered's chief executive, did acknowledge that the current conditions pose a challenge though.

"Whilst the near-term economic conditions have deteriorated sharply across virtually all our markets, they remain fundamentally attractive," he said.

The Middle East, he says, offers "enormous long-term potential".