Dubai-based shipowner Emirates Trading Agency (ETA) has lost a court battle on its home turf after a Dubai court ruled that its assets cannot be removed from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) jurisdiction until Belgium’s Bocimar is paid the $118.8m it is owed under court judgments.

Bocimar officials tell Trade­Winds they are now looking into the practical questions of how to seize and sell prime Dubai waterfront real estate.