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Zayed International airport's air traffic controllers have guided planes carrying at total of 6.8 million passengers in the first three months of the year

London and India dominate airport traffic in Abu Dhabi

London and Indian cities dominated traffic at Abu Dhabi’s airports during the first quarter with year-on-year visitor numbers up by more than a third. Close to 7 million passengers passed through the emirate’s five airports in the first three months of the year. Zayed International airport, formerly known as Abu Dhabi International airport, welcomed 6.8 […]

Dubai residents receive help from volunteers as they evacuate their flooded homes

Flooding puts spotlight on Dubai’s population growth

Extensive flooding caused by the historic April 16 storm highlights the challenges the Dubai authorities face as they work on increasing the population by 2.5 million people by 2040. With an increasingly erratic climate, the key for local authorities will be managing that growth closely, industry professionals told AGBI.  “The growth in itself is not […]

Rain falling on paved surfaces such as roads has nowhere to go, but retrofitting roads to allow rainwater harvesting could help, some experts say

Rain harvesting could help Dubai offset a stormy future

If last week’s floods made improving drainage a necessity for Dubai, the reward might come in the form of more natural water resources, provided the emirate can boost rain harvesting efforts, industry observers tell AGBI. “The main idea for countries, especially in drier areas, is to try to reuse water as much as possible,” says […]

Art NFTs Video length: 04:13

Dubai art dealer uses NFTs for fractional art ownership

A Dubai tech startup is introducing tokenisation to the art world, after the NFT bubble burst spectacularly. 10101.art aims to make investing in art accessible to all by selling digitised fragments of works by artists including Andy Warhol, Banksy and Picasso, allowing for collective ownership of a masterpiece for as little as $100 a fragment. […]

Cenomi executives hope to attract shoppers who might otherwise spend abroad by offering a 'world class' experience Young muslim couple shopping and having fun

Saudi mall operator takes aim at Dubai’s retail crown

Saudi Arabia’s leading mall operator is looking to challenge Dubai for the title of the top retail location in the Gulf, with plans to add five more locations by 2027. Bruno Wehbe, chief operating officer of Cenomi Centers, said the Jawharat Riyadh would include new elements such as 3D holographic projections, food halls with live […]

emirates-nbd

Emirates NBD Q1 profit rises 12% on global income growth

Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank by assets, said net profit rose 12 percent in the first quarter of 2024, thanks to income growth from its international network. Net profit for the first three months ended March 31 reached AED6.7 billion ($1.8 billion), up from AED6 billion a year ago. Total assets jumped to AED902 billion […]

UAE flood insurers

UAE insurers face ‘very severe’ impact from floods

UAE insurers have been “badly hit” following April’s freak rains, a veteran industry executive warned on Tuesday, but the scale of companies’ losses from the floods will depend on their own reinsurance cover. The UAE experienced its heaviest rains in 75 years last week. The downpour turned main roads, particularly in Dubai, into waterways, leaving […]

A flooded residential area in Dubai. New drainage infrastructure should be nature-based, say experts

Concrete or sponge? Dubai’s post-flooding options

In the wake of last week’s floods, retrofitting Dubai with traditional, concrete-based drainage systems would be expensive, time-consuming and complicated. As an alternative, authorities should look to nature-based solutions, industry professionals told AGBI. “Dubai should not repeat the mistakes that have been made in most of the Western world,” said Ronny Berndtsson, professor in water […]

Emaar dividend Dubai mall

Emaar doubles dividend to $1.2bn after $11bn in sales

Shareholders of Emaar Properties, Dubai’s largest listed developer, have approved a dividend of AED4.4 billion ($1.2 billion) for 2023, up from AED2.2 billion the year before. The dividend payout reflects the company’s “robust profitability and solid financial health”, the developer said in a statement.  Shareholders also voted to appoint new board members “to drive the […]

Dubai flooding clean-up

Crown Prince tells developers to pay for Dubai flood clean-up 

Dubai property developers have been ordered by the emirate’s Crown Prince to bring “normalcy” back to communities devastated by last week’s flooding – at no additional charge to tenants. The UAE experienced its heaviest rains in 75 years last Tuesday. The downpour turned main roads, particularly in Dubai, into waterways, leaving motorists stranded and causing […]

A man wades through a flooded street in Dubai. Some areas of the UAE received more than a year's worth of rain in one day Video length: 03:08

UAE president orders review after flooding

The UAE’s president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has ordered an urgent review of the country’s infrastructure after historic levels of rainfall brought the Gulf state to a standstill, with some areas seeing more than a year’s worth of rain in one day. The president has contacted authorities “to quickly work on studying the […]

Emirates' REIT's portfolio includes the Index Tower (centre). Its profit rose 55 percent year on year

Emirates REIT in profit after revaluation gain

Dubai’s Emirates REIT reported a 55 percent rise in annual profit after making a nine-figure revaluation gain on its property portfolio. A REIT – a real estate investment trust – is a company that owns income-producing assets related to real estate such as buildings, land and real estate securities.  Through REITs investors can have fractional […]

Telegram founder Pavel Durov believes the messaging app will have 1 billion users soon, and chose Dubai for his new base as it is 'neutral'

Telegram to hit 1bn users in a year, founder says

Telegram, the messaging platform based in Dubai, will have one billion active monthly users within the next year, its founder Pavel Durov said on Tuesday. The app has 900 million active users at the moment. It aims to remain a “neutral platform” and not a “player in geopolitics,” Durov said during a recent video interview […]

Dubai was hit by the heaviest rainfall in 75 years on Tuesday, leaving motorists stranded floods rain weather UAE Gulf

Gulf’s record floods highlight ‘balance between risk and investment’

Historic rainfall this week in the Gulf, particularly in the UAE, has raised serious questions about investment in infrastructure to prevent the widespread flooding that brought much of the region to a standstill. On Tuesday the UAE was hit by its heaviest rains in 75 years. The downpour turned main roads into waterways, particularly in […]

Prices for apartments in Dubai – with or without enviable views – have risen by as much as 30% year on year

Rising prices risk making Dubai homes ‘unattainable’

Escalating home prices in Dubai’s affordable communities are making it even more difficult for residents to get on the property ladder, real estate experts have warned. February data from property consultancy ValuStrat shows the highest annual growth in apartment values was recorded in the emirate’s more budget-friendly neighbourhoods.  Prices in Discovery Gardens and The Greens […]

Sunil Kumar, CEO of the supermarket chain, says private-label sales account for 42% of its revenue

Spinneys bets big on sales growth for own-label goods

Supermarket operator Spinneys is betting big on strong sales of its private-label products as it prepares to go public next month, CEO Sunil Kumar told AGBI on Tuesday. Its private label – or own-brand – ranges cover food, toiletries and household goods. The retailer also has exclusive rights to sell Waitrose-branded products from the UK […]

Spinneys CEO Sunil Kumar and chairman Ali Al Bwardy. The company operates 75 grocery retail supermarkets in the UAE and Oman

Spinneys to offer 900m shares in Dubai IPO

Supermarket operator Spinneys will sell 25 percent of its business in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), according to an intention to float document released on Tuesday. The company’s offering will be open from April 23 to April 29 for retail investors, while institutional investors can subscribe until April 30, according […]