Turkey’s Erdogan cancels video meeting due to illness

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan postponed a video appearance on Thursday, only days after falling ill during a live TV interview.

Mr Erdogan was set to appear at an event to showcase a new nuclear plant at 1.30pm local time, now postponed until 4pm. His office confirmed the delay but gave no further details.

The President has been out of public view since bowing out of a live TV interview on Tuesday night, during which he fell ill.

The incident has reignited rumours of ill health as Mr Erdogan battles a tight election race scheduled for next month.

On Wednesday, he cancelled election rallies on the advice of his doctors.

His TV appearance on Tuesday began 90 minutes behind schedule and lasted only 10 minutes before the broadcast cut to a commercial break.

The 69-year-old looked to be waning during the interview before cutting it short mid-question.

The camera shook and the screen turned blank as the broadcast stopped.

A voice could be heard saying "oh wow" in the background, while someone repeatedly coughed.

Mr Erdogan returned about 15 minutes later and apologised, saying he had developed stomach flu while travelling for campaign rallies.

He was expected to use the nuclear power plant ceremony to bolster support among voters who back the Turkish leader’s “strongman” image and close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Rumours about Mr Erdogan's health have been circulating since he underwent two gastrointestinal operations in 2011 and 2012 and the speculation could undermine his image amid a tightly contested battle for the presidency.

The surgery went well on each occasion but left him with a slight slump in his gait that appears to have fed some of the social media rumours.

Health Minister Derya Yanik told Turkish television on Thursday that Mr Erdogan was on the mend.

"There is nothing to worry about, he is well," she said. "He will resume his intense programme tomorrow, I think."

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.”

Turkey’s Erdogan cancels video meeting due to illness

President was due to speak to Russian leader Vladimir Putin after campaign event at nuclear power plant