Boys play frisbee at Capital Park, Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
Boys play frisbee at Capital Park, Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National
A security personnel looks at shoppers entering a Carrefour hypermarket in the Cairo suburb of Maadi, Egypt. Reuters
A security personnel looks at shoppers entering a Carrefour hypermarket in the Cairo suburb of Maadi, Egypt. Reuters
Palestinian health workers pray over the body of a doctor, who died from the coronavirus, ahead of his burial in a cemetery in the northern Gaza Strip. AFP
Palestinian health workers pray over the body of a doctor, who died from the coronavirus, ahead of his burial in a cemetery in the northern Gaza Strip. AFP
Libyan medical workers stick informative notices on a shop window during an awareness campaing on Covid-19 at the Friday market in the capital Tripoli. AFP
Libyan medical workers stick informative notices on a shop window during an awareness campaing on Covid-19 at the Friday market in the capital Tripoli. AFP
A medical personnel sprays disinfectant as Iraqi Shiite worshipers perform their Friday Prayers in Sadr City. EPA
A medical personnel sprays disinfectant as Iraqi Shiite worshipers perform their Friday Prayers in Sadr City. EPA
An Iranian elderly woman sits on a bench in a street of Tehran, Iran. EPA
An Iranian elderly woman sits on a bench in a street of Tehran, Iran. EPA
A girl hugs her mother during a protest for relatives and families of Islamic prisoners at Roumieh prison as they carry placards calling for clemency for their relatives in the coastal town of Sidon, Lebanon. EPA
A girl hugs her mother during a protest for relatives and families of Islamic prisoners at Roumieh prison as they carry placards calling for clemency for their relatives in the coastal town of Sidon, Lebanon. EPA
A volunteer is injected with an experimental Chinese Covid-19 vaccine as Turkey began final Phase III trials at Kocaeli University Research Hospital in Kocaeli, Turkey. Reuters
A volunteer is injected with an experimental Chinese Covid-19 vaccine as Turkey began final Phase III trials at Kocaeli University Research Hospital in Kocaeli, Turkey. Reuters

Health

Coronavirus: UAE records 1,400 Covid-19 cases as 2,189 recover

Three more patients died after contracting the virus

The National

October 28, 2020

  • English
  • Arabic

The UAE recorded 1,400 Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing its total to 129,024.

A further 2,189 patients beat the virus as the recovery tally climbed to 124,647.

Three more people died as the death toll rose to 485.

The latest cases were identified as a result of 104,673 daily tests.

The UAE has conducted more than 12.7 million tests since the outbreak began as part of a mass screening strategy aimed at identifying infections early to limit the spread of the pathogen.

The number of active cases across the country fell to 3,892, due to a recent trend of recoveries exceeding new cases.

Case numbers have remained above 1,000 for all but two days of October, including a record-high of 1,578 on October 22.

Recovery rates have consistently outstripped new cases, however, topping 1,000 every day this month.

Over the last seven days, the UAE has reported 9,892 cases at an average of 1,413 per day.

During the same period, 12,883 patients have recovered from the virus at an average of 1,833 each day.

Wednesday's recovery tally is the second highest to date, beaten only by the 2,443 recoveries reported on September 6.

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, has urged the public to support authorities in driving down infections.

He sent out the strong message after joining Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of the Dubai, in congratulating a newlywed royal couple on Tuesday by video call.

"Protecting the UAE during these challenging times is a shared responsibility," said Sheikh Mohamed.

"Following precautionary measures during our social events guarantees our safety as a society, and supports our country's efforts in combating Covid-19."

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Company Fact Box

Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019

Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO

Based: Amman, Jordan

Sector: Education Technology

Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed

Stage: early-stage startup 

Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

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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