Will Dubai Be a Drag on Gulf Region?

* username: rupertbu

With a dazzling display of fireworks that lit the night sky for miles around, Dubai officially added “world’s tallest building” this month to its trophy case of superlatives.

The inauguration was intended to send a bravura message: Dubai, after a brush with default last year, was back. But for many investors, the silvery steel needle that soars half a mile into the sky will remain a fitting symbol of the hubris that led to the wealthy city-state’s burst property bubble.

Will the tarnish in Dubai spread to other oil-rich Gulf economies?