Finance Dubai’s Sidara wins extension in John Wood Group bid Dubai engineering and consulting company Dar Al-Handasah – known as Sidara – has been granted an extension in its quest to buy London-listed contractor John Wood Group. Sidara had proposed an offer of 230 pence sterling per share, giving Wood a valuation of £1.58 billion ($2 billion), significantly higher than the first of three bids, […] July 4, 2024
Video length: 05:09 VIDEO Markets Dubai and Abu Dhabi need some IPO diversity “You want your capital markets to be a mirror of your economy on the ground,” says Saad Chalabi, CEO of brokerage platform xCube. In the UAE, however, that has not been the case. The markets in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are “mostly real estate and banking in terms of weight”, though more oil, utilities and […] July 4, 2024
Analysis Employment Abu Dhabi court rulings strengthen UAE arbitration Recent court rulings in Abu Dhabi further tighten the UAE’s embrace of arbitration as the go-to mechanism to resolve commercial disputes, according to industry attorneys. Arbitration in the emirates has gone through a “groundbreaking” evolution ever since the Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, issued Decree number 34 in September 2021, closing the […] July 2, 2024
Transport Dubai begins work on ‘20-minute city’ concept Dubai has approved a plan to support the “20-minute city” concept by developing land close to metro stations. The emirate’s executive council gave the green light to a plan to develop areas around metro stations by incentivising developers, UAE state-owned Wam news agency reported. The move will provide additional services, support the 20-minute city concept, […] July 1, 2024
Analysis People & Lifestyle Handbags and gladrags: price not an issue for Dubai’s fashionistas Fashion Avenue in Dubai Mall reads like a Who’s Who of luxury brands. Discerning — and well-heeled — residents and visitors can casually survey the latest from Boss, Christian Louboutin, Chanel, Tiffany and Louis Vuitton, undaunted by a cost of living crisis that has marked much of the world. Dubai has just been named the […] June 28, 2024
Opinion Media & Advertising Hacks, flacks and the power of persuasion Bahri Bar buzz about the regional media scene June 28, 2024
Opinion Lifestyle A tale of two city states The commonality between Singapore and Dubai runs deeper than finance and bricks and mortar June 28, 2024
Finance Drake & Scull opens nominations for new board Dubai contractor Drake & Scull International (DSI) has opened nominations for new board members, after the completion of a lengthy restructuring process. DSI is looking to fill seven positions, according to a filing to Dubai Financial Market (DFM), with nominations open until July 11. Earlier this week the board of directors tendered their resignations in […] June 27, 2024
Finance Global legal saga continues for Dubai entrepreneur Riad Tawfiq Al Sadik, a construction entrepreneur based in Dubai, must pay 85 percent of the legal costs incurred by Clyde & Co after his suit against the law firm was thrown out in April, a UK court ruled this week, according to a report from City AM. The case stemmed from Al Sadik’s staggering […] June 27, 2024
Analysis Infrastructure Engineers measure up Dubai’s $8bn flood defence plan After April’s once-in-a-century storm that put swaths of Dubai under water, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has cleared the way for a AED30 billion ($8 billion) stormwater management upgrade. The ambitious expansion of the emirate’s drainage system will provide a sevenfold increase in its capacity to handle rainwater, to more than 20 million cubic […] June 27, 2024
Opinion Tourism How many more hotel rooms can the Gulf take? Plenty, it seems Normal standards do not apply in Dubai, which has one of the most robust hotel markets in the world June 25, 2024
Analysis Economy Wealthy migrants to UAE boost luxuries but stir inflation The UAE is likely to attract a new surge of ultra-rich migrants, lured by low tax rates, high-privacy settings and a luxurious lifestyle, at a time of global geopolitical upheaval and heightened anti-money laundering measures in developed countries. But, while the wave of wealth is likely to stimulate specialised sectors of the economy, the arrivals […] June 20, 2024
Banking & Finance UAE increases gold reserves with growth set to continue The UAE’s gold reserves reached almost AED20 billion ($5.5 billion) at the end of March, rising 12.6 percent year on year, with expectations that the growth will continue into the rest of the year. The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) said the Gulf state’s reserves of the precious metal have risen considerably over the […] June 20, 2024
Economy Cairo and Istanbul feel biggest cost of living squeeze Dubai has become the most expensive city in the Middle East for expatriate workers, while Cairo and Istanbul were among the cities that saw the biggest rise in the cost of living this year, as soaring inflation impacted wages. Dubai, the UAE’s largest city, saw rental prices rise by about a fifth in the last […] June 18, 2024
Real Estate Construction begins at Expo City Dubai site Construction has begun on the first residential properties at Expo City Dubai, part of a mixed-use master plan to repurpose the legacy site after the world fair came to a close two years ago. Master developer Expo City Dubai announced last week that it has awarded four key contracts for its Mangrove Residences. UAE-based USF […] June 17, 2024
Retail Chalhoub Group in venture with Italian luxury brand Luxury distributor Chalhoub Group has entered into a joint venture with Italian fashion conglomerate OTB Group to expand the brand’s footprint in the Gulf. OTB (which stands for Only The Brave) owns the Diesel, Jil Sander, Maison Margiela, Marni and Viktor&Rolf brands, the Staff International and Brave Kid companies, and holds a stake in the […] June 17, 2024
Analysis Infrastructure The future of DXB: airport could be turned into a city The $35 billion plan to turn Al Maktoum International into the busiest airport in the world has everyone talking about the remaking of Dubai South. Perhaps a bigger challenge is the redevelopment of the city’s main airport – Dubai International, or DXB. DXB is near some of the city’s most densely populated neighbourhoods and the […] June 16, 2024
Opinion Transport The Rolls-Royce Spectre: saving the planet, ostentatiously The new elite EV is a jaw-dropping phenomenon even on Dubai's blingy roads June 14, 2024
Aviation US fines Emirates for operating in prohibited airspace Emirates has been fined $1.5 million by the US Transportation Department for operating flights carrying JetBlue Airways’ JBLU.O designator code in prohibited airspace. The transportation department said that between December 2021 and August 2022, Emirates operated a significant number of flights carrying the JetBlue Airways code between the United Arab Emirates and the United States […] June 14, 2024
Media & Advertising Al Habtoor scraps Lebanon TV channel after physical threats Dubai’s Al Habtoor Group has cancelled plans to launch a TV channel from Lebanon after physical threats were made to the founder and staff. Chairman and founder Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor said that the “lack of necessary security stability for investment … has left us no choice but to step back from this initiative and […] June 12, 2024