The UAE on Wednesday approved a Dh2 billion ($540 million) aid package to support Emiratis affected by the country's worst storms on record.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, set out the major relief effort as he chaired a meeting of the UAE Cabinet at Qasr Al Watan in Abu Dhabi.
He said the funds would be used to address damage caused to the homes and property of citizens.
He said a committee would be established to assess the damage caused by the adverse weather, which struck the Emirates last Tuesday.
"In the Council of Ministers today, we approved an amount of 2 billion dirhams to address the damage to citizens’ homes," Sheikh Mohammed wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
"A ministerial committee was assigned to follow up on this file, inventory the damage to homes, and disburse compensation in co-operation with the rest of the federal and local authorities."
Sheikh Mohammed said the extreme weather was "unprecedented in its severity" and lessons would be learned from the deluge.
He said emergency services had received more than 200,000 calls related to the heavy flooding.
The UAE was lashed by the highest single day of rainfall in 75 years, leading to widespread flooding of homes and roads and significant disruption to travel.
Deadly floods
At least three people died in the torrential rainfall which battered large parts of the country.
An Emirati man died during fierce flash flooding on Tuesday in Ras Al Khaimah.
The citizen, who was in his 70s, was killed when his vehicle was swept away by strong currents during treacherous weather in Ras Al Khaimah.
Police said the man was attempting to travel through a flooded wadi as heavy rain battered the emirate.
Emergency response teams recovered his body.
Two people suffocated in their car in Sharjah on the same day.
The incident happened after they became trapped in their car as they travelled to their homes in Sharjah.
Maj Gen Saif Al Shamsi, commander-in-chief of Sharjah Police, told The National the two were travelling along Al Wahda Street when their vehicle became stuck in a traffic jam caused by the flooding.
“At this time, the vehicle was completely sealed, which unfortunately led to the accumulation of carbon monoxide from the running air-conditioning unit” he said.
“The autopsy confirmed their death was due to carbon monoxide poisoning."
Flood response
President Sheikh Mohamed called for a quick response from authorities.
Sheikh Mohamed expressed his appreciation for the awareness and responsibility shown by people during the adverse weather, state news agency Wam reported.
He has requested that authorities quickly work on limiting the damage caused after the country witnessed its heaviest rainfall on record.
Sheikh Mohamed also asked that necessary support be provided to all families affected by the severe weather, ordering that they be moved to safe locations in co-operation with local authorities.
Economy and tourism on agenda
Ministers reviewed the nation's economic progress and a positive tourism outlook during the meeting.
Sheikh Mohammed said economic partnerships agreed with more than a dozen countries would enable the country to increase exports by Dh366bn annually by 2031.
The Prime Minister said the UAE's foreign trade for all goods in services reached Dh445bn in 2023, a record figure.
The Prime Minister revealed the number of hotel guests nationwide reached 28 million in 2023, up 11 per cent on the previous year.
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Tony Booth, professor of education
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Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
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Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
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.”
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The specs: Volvo XC40
Price: base / as tested: Dh185,000
Engine: 2.0-litre, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 250hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 350Nm @ 1,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.4L / 100km
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
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Building boom turning to bust as Turkey's economy slows
Deep in a provincial region of northwestern Turkey, it looks like a mirage - hundreds of luxury houses built in neat rows, their pointed towers somewhere between French chateau and Disney castle.
Meant to provide luxurious accommodations for foreign buyers, the houses are however standing empty in what is anything but a fairytale for their investors.
The ambitious development has been hit by regional turmoil as well as the slump in the Turkish construction industry - a key sector - as the country's economy heads towards what could be a hard landing in an intensifying downturn.
After a long period of solid growth, Turkey's economy contracted 1.1 per cent in the third quarter, and many economists expect it will enter into recession this year.
The country has been hit by high inflation and a currency crisis in August. The lira lost 28 per cent of its value against the dollar in 2018 and markets are still unconvinced by the readiness of the government under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to tackle underlying economic issues.
The villas close to the town centre of Mudurnu in the Bolu region are intended to resemble European architecture and are part of the Sarot Group's Burj Al Babas project.
But the development of 732 villas and a shopping centre - which began in 2014 - is now in limbo as Sarot Group has sought bankruptcy protection.
It is one of hundreds of Turkish companies that have done so as they seek cover from creditors and to restructure their debts.
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 575bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh554,000
On sale: now
Need to know
When: October 17 until November 10
Cost: Entry is free but some events require prior registration
Where: Various locations including National Theatre (Abu Dhabi), Abu Dhabi Cultural Center, Zayed University Promenade, Beach Rotana (Abu Dhabi), Vox Cinemas at Yas Mall, Sharjah Youth Center
What: The Korea Festival will feature art exhibitions, a B-boy dance show, a mini K-pop concert, traditional dance and music performances, food tastings, a beauty seminar, and more.
For more information: www.koreafestivaluae.com
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
