Emirates Airline will begin non-stop direct flights between Dubai and Madrid on August 1 to create the first air services between the UAE and the popular southern European nation.
With the new daily flight the Dubai airline will fill a notable void in its European network and underlines growing trade and traffic between the two countries. It will become the fourth new route for Emirates this year, after Tokyo, Amsterdam and Prague.
"Traffic to and from Spain has been small in the past," said Premjit Bangara (ck), the travel manager at Sharaf Travel in Dubai. "But now the market is definitely growing slowly but steadily."
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the chairman and chief executive of Emirates, said: "If there is one route that we have been repeatedly asked about in recent years, it is Spain, so I believe we will make a lot of people very happy with this announcement."
While Spain ranks as the world's second largest tourist destination with 60 million tourists in 2007, until now only Qatar Airways has operated a direct flight from the Gulf starting in 2006.
One reason, according to Mr Bangara, is that there are not high numbers of Spanish-born expatriates living abroad and travelling back home that would have justified Emirates or Etihad from connecting it to their international networks. Instead the two carriers have focused on using their UAE hubs to serve Indians travelling to Europe and the U.S., Greeks expatriates living in Australia or Australians working in the UK, for example.
Spain is a top fashion supplier to the UAE with brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pepe Jeans gracing many malls in the country, and Emirates already operates all-cargo flights to the city of Zaragoza.
Bilateral trade between the UAE and Spain was worth more than Dh3.6 billion (US$1bn) in 2008, according to the Economic and Commercial Office of Spain in the UAE, of which Dh428m were Spanish clothing exports.
UAE exports into Spain include textiles, electronics, consumer goods and fish, while Spain exports include finished garments, manufactured goods and spare parts for the car industry.
The country was the second exports of haute couture shoes due to brands like Manolo Blahnik, according to the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Emirates will use an Airbus 330-200 on the route, with 12 first-class seats, 42 in business and 183 economy-class seats.
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
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Drivers’ championship standings after Singapore:
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 263
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 235
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 212
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 162
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 138
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Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
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Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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Ahmed Saadawi
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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
Power: 169bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh54,500
On sale: now
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Rating: 4/5
Scores
Oman 109-3 in 18.4 overs (Aqib Ilyas 45 not out, Aamir Kaleem 27) beat UAE 108-9 in 20 overs (Usman 27, Mustafa 24, Fayyaz 3-16, Bilal 3-23)
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Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs
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Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
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Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
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Director: Zack Snyder
Stars: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera
Three stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
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Director: Todd Phillips
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