DUBAI// Fake perfumes worth Dh2 million have been confiscated after a raid on a warehouse in the emirate.
More than 170,000 counterfeit items of 10 well-known brands were discovered in a building in Ras Al Khor building by inspectors from Dubai’s Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection (CCCP) sector in the Department of Economic Development (DED).
“The inspectors of CCCP maintain round the clock vigil against trademark violations and products that are harmful to humans and the reputation of the market,” said Abdullah Al Shehi, director of the Intellectual Property Protection Department at CCCP.
“Counterfeit products pose a serious threat to ethical trade practices and we work with trademark owners to make sure that such products do not enter the local market.”
The warehouse owner was fined and the CCCP is currently testing the confiscated goods. Those that are found to be a risk to people’s health will be destroyed.
The rest of the seized goods will be re-exported back to the country of origin after the collection of a 30 per cent duty.
The raid is part of ongoing efforts by the CCCP to protect trademarks and eliminate fake goods from local markets.
Officials said it is important to protect trademarks as it maintains the emirate’s position as a competitive business hub and safeguards traders and consumers.
Mr Al Shehi also warned consumers to be wary of counterfeits, urging them to verify with the trademark owner in case of any suspicion regarding the originality of a product.
nhanif@thenational.ae
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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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