Ras Al Khaimah & Abu Dhabi
Get tickets to see British comedian Jason Manford as he continues his Muddle Class tour through the UAE. The close-quarters gig explores Manford’s life growing up working class, then unexpectedly discovering that part of him had become middle class.
Thursday, 8.30pm, Dh250, DoubleTree by Hilton Resort & Spa, Marjan Island, Ras Al Khaimah; Friday, 8.30pm, Dh250, Ballroom, Park Rotana, Abu Dhabi, www.thelaughterfactory.com
Abu Dhabi
Charity run
Register now to take part in the Terry Fox Run, a non-competitive event that celebrates the memory of one of Canada’s most revered athletes and raises money for cancer research in the UAE. The event is open to all ages and abilities as well as modes of participation, including walkers, runners, in-line skaters and wheelchair users. There is no registration fee; donations are welcome.
January 19, 7am for registration; 9am start, East Plaza, Abu Dhabi Corniche, Abu Dhabi, www.terryfox.org/international-runs/abudhabi
Abu Dhabi
Concert
Book tickets to see American pop group Fifth Harmony on their first visit to the Abu Dhabi, following their headlining visit to Dubai's RedFestDXB last year. The former X Factor contestants recently released their self-titled third album. Hits include Work from Home, Worth It and That's My Girl.
March 16, 7.30pm, from Dh250, du Forum, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, www.ticketmaster.ae
Abu Dhabi
Fitness venue
TrainYas presented by Daman ActiveLife is a weekly event that lets you get fit or stay fit this winter with a walk, jog, run or bike around the 5.55 km track. Rent bikes and helmets from Fun Ride Sports or take advantage of the 400 bikes made available to borrow from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi.
Tuesdays, 6pm to 10pm, free with registration, Yas Marina Circuit, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, register at www.yasmarinacircuit.com
Abu Dhabi
Exhibition
Hajj: Memories of a Journey continues at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre. Learn about the routes pilgrims travelled across continents to take part in Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam. Plus, see rare photographs of Sheikh Zayed, Founding President of the UAE, who made his personal journey in 1979 (pictured). A programme of events accompanies the exhibition, including a series of workshops for adults and children.
Daily until March 19, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre, Abu Dhabi, 02 419 1919, www.szgmc.ae
Dubai
Comedy show
American comedian Chris Rock brings his Total Blackout Tour to Dubai this weekend. Get tickets now to see the former cast member of Saturday Night Live who is known for his stand-up shows as well as films including Grown Ups, Madagascar, The Longest Yard, Top Five, Death at a Funeral and the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris.
Friday and Saturday, 6pm, from Dh395, Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, www.ticketmaster.ae
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Dubai
Art classes
Register your children (in age groups of 7 to 10 and 11 to 18) for the spring term of the Young Artist Programme at thejamjar. In this session, they will focus on the theme of society, learning techniques such as poster-making, screen-printing, illustration, stencil-art and photography.
January 17 to February 24, 10am to noon and 12.30 to 2.30 on Saturdays; 4.30pm to 6.30pm on Wednesdays, from Dh1,600 includes all required materials, thejamjar, Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai, 04 341 7303, booking@thejamjar.com
Dubai
Exhibition
Catch the final week of Kais Salman's exhibition Cities, in which he draws upon folk tales, epic stories and myths to create alternate realities through which to examine the roles his characters play within architectural and social spaces. Pictured: an untitled image by Kais Salman
Daily until Saturday, 10am to 6pm, Sundays to Thursdays; noon to 6pm on Saturdays (closed Fridays), Ayyam Gallery, 12 Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai, 04 323 6242, www.ayyamgallery.com
Dubai
Exhibition
See the exhibition Highlighted Memory by Iraqi multimedia artist Azad Nanakeli, who is showing paintings, photography, video and installation in which he explores the connections between experiences, past and present, memory and identity. Pictured: an untitled image by Azad Nanakeli
Dubai
Kids’ camp
Register your children, ages 6 to 12, for the Ductac Winter Camp, where they can expect to be immersed in winter-themed arts and crafts such as pottery and 3-D art, as well as seasonal magic tricks.
Runs until Sunday, 9am to 1pm, from Dh250 per day; Dh1,000 per week, early drop-off and late pick-up are available, Ductac, Mall of the Emirates, Dubai, 04 341 4777, www.ductac.org
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
The specs
Engine: 2.3-litre, turbo four-cylinder
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Power: 300hp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: Dh189,900
On sale: now
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
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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Results:
Men’s wheelchair 200m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 27.14; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 27.81; 3. Rheed McCracken (AUS) 27.81.
The specs
Price, base: Dh228,000 / Dh232,000 (est)
Engine: 5.7-litre Hemi V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 395hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 552Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.5L / 100km
