Body of Emirati boy who fell into the Nile found

The body of a six-year-old Emirati boy who fell into the Nile last week has been found.

Hamad Abdulla Al Ali, from Sharjah, fell into the water during a night with his family on Friday night in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

His uncle, Ibrahim Al Ali, yesterday said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had informed him Hamad's body had been found 25km downstream from where he was last seen.

"I cried all night thinking about him," said the boy's uncle Ibrahim Al Ali.

Hamad, the youngest of five, was standing on the seats on the back of the boat when he lost his balance, his uncle said.

"His father wanted to jump in after him but they told him it was too dangerous. The dark waters at night and the fast currents of the river would have probably killed anyone who went after him," he said.

Hamad's father, Abdulla Al Ali, a lawyer who heads the Abdulla Al Ali and Associates law company in Dubai, was too upset to talk to his brother on the phone.

"He has not been able to sleep since and has been crying for his son," said Ibrahim Al Ali, who added that he too had been unable to stop crying.

"Hamad was loved and spoiled by all as he was the youngest. He was your average six-year-old who loved bikes."

Muhammed Latif, who has been the public relations officer at Mr Al Ali's company for more than 20 years, said the whole office was distraught.

"Hamad was Mr Abdulla's favourite child and he was the most similar to his father. It's terrible that this has happened, especially as it was not in his country."

Mr Latif said Mr Al Ali had been on holiday in Egypt for 15 days with his wife and three of his five children, Hussam, Hind and Hamad.

The other two children, Mohammed and Reem, had stayed in the UAE.

After receiving a call from Mr Al Ali about Hamad's accident, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs worked with the Ministry of Interior to send a search and rescue team to Eygpt.

Juma Mubarak Al Junaibi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the ministry had instructed the UAE Embassy in Cairo to work with Egyptian authorities to search for the child.

A spokesman for the Egyptian Embassy in Abu Dhabi said a team of divers from the UAE had arrived in Cairo yesterday morning to help in the search.

tsubaihi@thenational.ae

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

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How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?

If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.

Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.

Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.

Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).

Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.

Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.

By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.

As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.

Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.

He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”

This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”

Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.