(Bloomberg) -- United Arab Emirates banks' bad-loan ratio climbed to the highest level in more than five years as falling property prices and a sluggish economy took their toll on businesses. That's prompted some lenders in the second-biggest Arab economy to ease payment terms by extending loan maturities and lowering interest rate. The ratio, which hit 6.4% at the end of September, compares with 1.7% in Saudi Arabia and 1.9% in Qatar at the end of June, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence.
--With assistance from Edmond Christou.
To contact the reporter on this story: Arif Sharif in Dubai at asharif2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Dana El Baltaji at delbaltaji@bloomberg.net, Claudia Maedler, Shaji Mathew
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