Turkish delight comes to Dubai at shopping festival

Two famous Turkish actors launched the Istanbul Shopping Festival (ISF) yesterday in Dubai as Turkey hopes to attract thousands of UAE residents this summer.

Shoppers spent 8 billion Turkish lira (Dh16.7bn) in 40 days last year at the festival, which is in its second year, and the organisers hope to achieve sales of 7bn lira this year in just 21 days.

The ISF hosted 5 million visitors last year and will run June 9-29 this summer.

"We want to have more tourists in Istanbul for shopping reasons," said Fusun Sonmez, the general manager for the event. "Istanbul is a big city, but we will spend a lot of money to paint it in the colours of ISF."

Shops will offer discounts of 50 per cent on purchases and the city will host street parties, live entertainment and concerts with famous Turkish singers.

Kivanc Tatlitug and Songul Oden, actors from a Turkish TV series called Noor in Arabic, yesterday launched ISF in Dubai in a bid to attract Arab nationals from around the Gulf to Istanbul, which has more than 100 shopping centres.

"In the first quarter of 2012, we have seen an 86 per cent increase in the number [of visitors] from the UAE. It was going up and up and will peak in June and July," said Sedat Gonulluoglu, the cultural attaché from the Turkish Consulate in Dubai. "Istanbul has lots of things to offer but ISF will be one more and I'm sure we will love ISF this year. It will be shorter, but more fun."

In addition to the discounts on offer, tourists will also be able to receive refunds on part of the tax they pay for goods at kiosks around the city.

Ms Sonmez visited the Dubai Shopping Festival (DFS) in January to witness the opening fireworks display and says she has learnt from its success.

"We have learnt a lot and we are still in the learning process from DSF and other shopping festivals," she said. "We would like to create a unique shopping festival because we have values different from the rest of the world."

The event is organised by the Turkish government, in conjunction with commercial bodies, and sponsored by Turkish Airlines.

rjones@thenational.ae

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What should do investors do now?

What does the S&P 500's new all-time high mean for the average investor?

Should I be euphoric?

No. It's fine to be pleased about hearty returns on your investments. But it's not a good idea to tie your emotions closely to the ups and downs of the stock market. You'll get tired fast. This market moment comes on the heels of last year's nosedive. And it's not the first or last time the stock market will make a dramatic move.

So what happened?

It's more about what happened last year. Many of the concerns that triggered that plunge towards the end of last have largely been quelled. The US and China are slowly moving toward a trade agreement. The Federal Reserve has indicated it likely will not raise rates at all in 2019 after seven recent increases. And those changes, along with some strong earnings reports and broader healthy economic indicators, have fueled some optimism in stock markets.

"The panic in the fourth quarter was based mostly on fears," says Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist for Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company. "The fundamentals have mostly held up, while the fears have gone away and the fears were based mostly on emotion."

Should I buy? Should I sell?

Maybe. It depends on what your long-term investment plan is. The best advice is usually the same no matter the day — determine your financial goals, make a plan to reach them and stick to it.

"I would encourage (investors) not to overreact to highs, just as I would encourage them not to overreact to the lows of December," Mr Schutte says.

All the same, there are some situations in which you should consider taking action. If you think you can't live through another low like last year, the time to get out is now. If the balance of assets in your portfolio is out of whack thanks to the rise of the stock market, make adjustments. And if you need your money in the next five to 10 years, it shouldn't be in stocks anyhow. But for most people, it's also a good time to just leave things be.

Resist the urge to abandon the diversification of your portfolio, Mr Schutte cautions. It may be tempting to shed other investments that aren't performing as well, such as some international stocks, but diversification is designed to help steady your performance over time.

Will the rally last?

No one knows for sure. But David Bailin, chief investment officer at Citi Private Bank, expects the US market could move up 5 per cent to 7 per cent more over the next nine to 12 months, provided the Fed doesn't raise rates and earnings growth exceeds current expectations. We are in a late cycle market, a period when US equities have historically done very well, but volatility also rises, he says.

"This phase can last six months to several years, but it's important clients remain invested and not try to prematurely position for a contraction of the market," Mr Bailin says. "Doing so would risk missing out on important portfolio returns."

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UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

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