Wednesday, 21 December 2011

Why it is unlikely 2012 will be a repeat of 2009 for Dubai « ArabianMoney

The Arab Spring has been an economic disaster for many countries this year but not for the UAE, the federation often seen as the Switzerland of the Middle East.


Money flowed into the UAE from countries affected by the uprisings. It came from wealthy individuals seeking a safe haven, foreign expatriates relocating their families and multinational companies moving to relative safety, and even from tourists with few other options.


At the same time the federation enjoyed total annual oil revenues in excess of $100 billion, the highest in history, for oil went above $100-a-barrel and stayed there. There was also a continued recovery in the global economy from the financial crisis of three years ago and the UAE benefited from rising trade flows particularly from China. Local bond prices rose and the cost of borrowing fell and refinancing local debts was relatively easy and cheap.

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