Arun Panchariya-UAE, Qatar’s MSCI Upgrade Makes A Hit

The recent upgrade of Qatar and the UAE to emerging market status from frontier market by index compiler Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) has been hailed as a milestone for the region.
But everyone is not a believer. Executive chairman of Templeton Emerging Markets Group, Dr. Mark Mobius, had exclusively told Gulf Business in an interview, “I think it is important to note that we do not follow the MSCI index categories and recommend that investors don’t pay much attention to such indices since they do not comprehensively reflect the situation in each country.”
Stuart Anderson, managing director and regional head, Middle East at the international ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has also voiced a similar opinion, saying, “While we don’t disagree with it, as it can only be positive, S&P has its own views on how indices are constructed.”
Addressing the issue of Saudi Arabia still being in the frontier market bracket, Anderson added that, “Saudi is an important market and most serious investors recognise that.”
He has confirmed that the sector he is most eager for S&P to become involved in is Saudi Arabia’s sukuk (Islamic bond) market. He said, “Currently Saudi forms only 10 per cent of the Middle East debt market, but it should be the largest. From a ratings perspective, Saudi will become the biggest sukuk market in the region.
He added that other countries also showed promise in the sukuk market, particularly the UAE.
“The recent Majid Al Futtaim bond, for example, which we gave a BBB rating, has set a benchmark for corporates in the region, and many others will aspire to that.”
S&P also expects the $1 trillion global Islamic finance industry to grow 20 per cent over 2011-2015, doubling in size over the period, as it is increasingly being viewed as an alternative to conventional finance.
“The global crisis faced by conventional finance has led to Islamic finance increasingly being viewed as a credible alternative. Issuers and investors have realised that the risk-reward balance in both conventional and Islamic finance are not fundamentally different,” Anderson said.
S&P will also increasingly focus on the oil and gas sector, with the aim to provide more than the currently available IMF data. “By furnishing linkages between oil and gas prices, and the fiscal breakeven point, we believe these studies will have a huge impact on sovereign ratings.”
“We will also start publishing in Arabic in Q3,” Anderson said. According to him, this is the first editorial resource in the region, and will be important for markets like Saudi Arabia, as it will primarily target non-executive board nationals.

With growing geographic and product opportunities in the region, S&P also plans to increase the number of staff members in its Dubai office. “We will be hiring 20 new people in Dubai by 2014, taking the total number of employees to 50.” S&P started its Dubai office with three employees and currently has 30 staff members.

Arun Panchariya-Equity funds lead the way for the year

Solid performance in UAE’s stock markets produced strong gains for regionally domiciled equity funds during the first seven months of the year. This also reflected positively on mixed assets funds that have heavy allocations to equities, according to data released by Lipper, a unit of Thomson Reuters that tracks mutual funds performance.

Majority of the region’s fixed income funds—as was the case with global onesc underperformed between January and July after they suffered in the months of May and June in the aftermath of the US Federal Reserve’s sudden announcement of monetary tightening to start later this year. Against the US Federal Reserve’s close to zero interest rate, regional money market funds have been among the best globally.

According to Detlef Glow, head of Lipper Research, Europe, Middle East and Africa(EMEA), in the global universe of equity funds, eight of the 10 best performing ones for the first six months of 2013 belong to the UAE Equity scheme.

Similarly, in the Mixed Assets category, eight of the 10 leading funds globally for the same period are domiciled within the GCC. In the universe of money market funds, seven of the 10 with the highest returns follow an Islamic approach and remarkably, all 10 funds with the best returns are GCC domiciled.

Leading the list in the equity category was MSCI UAE index tracker Invest AD’s fund, with a 63.01 per cent increase between January 1 and July 31, followed by Shuaa Capital’s Emirates Gateway Fund, which has exposure to UAE equities and rose 58.75 per cent.

Arun Panchariya- Witness the appliance of science at Abu Dhabi Expo

From biology and energy to chemistry and computers, the Expo-Sciences International forum will bring future scientists together in the capital next month.

The event is one of the UAE's largest focusing on scientific creativity and aspiring researchers.

About 1,500 participants from 60 countries, including the United States, France and Japan, are expected to attend.

Organised by the Abu Dhabi Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, the forum will include more than 600 projects from young people between the ages of 12 and 25.

They will be classed in 13 categories, such as earth science, engineering, electric and mechanical technology, and mathematical science. Others will focus on medicine and health, physics and astronomy, and technology and biotechnology.

"Our objective is to really show the best of science projects, inventions and research that has been done from more than 1,550 participants," said Ali Al Marzouqi, president of Emirates Skills and a member of the organising committee.

Arun Panchariya-Vogue Café launches in Dubai

A coterie of top models and erm, Ivorian footballer Didier Drogba attended the launch of publishing house Conde Nast's new café in Dubai last night.

With images from the Vogue archives providing the prefect backdrop, models Karolina Kurkova, Bianca Balti and Petra Nemcova - fresh from their red carpet exertions at the Cannes Film Festival - were served canapés of miniature dishes, such as lobster rolls and shrimp spring rolls, all washed down with inventive mocktails.

The second Vogue Café (the first was opened in Moscow, Russia) is situated within the Level Shoe District in The Dubai Mall. The luxurious shopping destination is home to carefully curated selection of shoes by every big brand, from Berluti to Valentino.
Second from left: Petra Němcová, Karolína Kurková, Didier Drogba, Bianca Balti and Ariadne Artiles.
"The Middle East is a very exciting market for us and one that we are proud to be a part of," commented Stuart Nielsen, Condé Nast International's director of restaurants.
Nielsen added: "We will soon be announcing further expansion plans within the UAE, and along with our partners, Inspired Brands, expanding the Condé Nast Restaurants portfolio in the region."

A Tatler Club is already open in Moscow, a GQ bar opened in Istanbul in February.

Arun Panchariya-Dubai Registered Lamborghinis Seized In London

Two Lamborghini supercars with Dubai number plates have been seized in London this month after their owners failed to have them insured.

Last Wednesday a silver Lamborghini Aventador was swopped on by police as it parked outside Harrods, the luxury retail store owned by Qatar and popular with wealthy Arabs.

For the Metropolitan Police, who patrol England’s capital city, impounding high-performance vehicles from the Gulf has become a regular activity in recent years as the number of Middle East tourists has risen.

Earlier this summer the London constabulary even used a Lamborghini for promotional purposes to warn wealthy drivers of the risks of not insuring their vehicles.

A metallic purple Aventador with orange trim was placed outside the police’s headquarters, New Scotland Yard, after its driver did not have a licence or insurance.

With rocketing summer temperatures in the Gulf, escaping to Europe’s big cities with the promise of cooler temperatures and greener landscapes has become a popular retreat for many in the Middle East.

In London last year, Saudi visitors were up by 22 per cent year-on-year while visitors from the UAE were up 10 per cent.

With the rise of wealthy visitors though comes a rise in traffic offences, although London’s authorities often struggle to collect fines due.

In previous years a Dubai-registered Rolls Royce racked up 18 tickets for parking offences amounting to £2,000 (Dhs11,500) while a Lamborghini Murcielago, also from Dubai, was slapped with 24 tickets.

Arun Panchariya-Four Leadership Lessons From Dubai’s Ruling Family

As the emirate works hard on settling accumulated debt while simultaneously announcing new grandiose plans, Dubai is an economic wonder and a continuous source of excitement.

Be visionary

Dubai demonstrates that a vision can become almost self-fulfilling and make the near-impossible happen. The Al Maktoum’s visions for Dubai are a world apart from the vision and mission statements that are formulated half-heartedly by so many executive teams around the world, that are basically fluffy extrapolations of what their companies are more or less already doing.

The current ruler’s father and former emir, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum, was naturally met with plenty of scepticism when he started transforming the small town of Dubai into an international hub for trade, transport and tourism. He laid the groundwork for today’s amazing infrastructure with foreign financing even before his emirate’s oil resources were discovered, which was relatively late and in moderate quantities.

Sheikh Rashid envisioned early on that Dubai’s oil wealth would be temporary and that the emirate would fall behind and back into past hardship, unless serious actions were taken. His philosophy, which his sons and other family members are applying to this very day, is that extensive supply can create impressive demand. Dubai has been built on visions, not on foreign experts’ estimates of immediate demand.

Communicate

In my work with executives in the Middle East and elsewhere, I often emphasise that what is not communicated does not exist for people around them. Clear, consistent and continuous communication has an immense power, and Dubai is an excellent example of this.

Within about 10 years, the emirate has gone from being a place few people have heard of to one that most informed people around the world have some perception of and where the international social elite visits regularly.

This road has been paved by small attention-grabbing events such as the tennis match between Andre Agassi and Roger Federer on the helipad of the Burj Al Arab hotel and the deployment by Dubai Police of a Ferrari and a Lamborghini as part of their fleet, as well as by other international iconic monuments like Palm Jumeirah and Burj Khalifa.

The art of communication is very close to the heart of today’s ruler, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum. Not only is he a popular and respected poet and the author of the bestselling book My Vision, he also now has more than two million people following his daily reflections on life via Twitter. He is regularly present at formal events and often appears as if from nowhere to inspect his emirate personally and speak with its residents and visitors.

Nurture business acumen

No executive can claim any achievement by just following the classical textbook on leadership, as his or her actual results are what ultimately count. In this regard, it is striking that several of the Gulf’s most well run companies are closely associated with the Al Maktoum family. Among these are DP World, du, Dubal, Emirates Airlines, Emaar and Jumeirah Group.

Underneath Dubai’s extravagant surface lie several highly efficient economic engines. New businesses have been started and critical decisions made with a meticulously mercantile mindset. Customers should be satisfied and money should be made. Experienced management teams have been hired, given good degrees of freedom but required to generate profit from early on, and meet increasing expectations from their owners as they progress.

Dubai has had a sound business model for much of its ongoing commercial activities despite its debt issue, which became evident in late 2009. The emirate now has about $64 billion of debt maturing over the next three years. The situation was triggered by highly optimistic asset valuations combined with excessive availability of cheap loans and followed by the international credit crunch.

Places such as Hong Kong, Miami and Singapore, where demand and supply of real estate likewise have skyrocketed in certain periods, have had to deal with their own lows due to sudden large imbalances after enjoying times when almost everything was growing.

Arun panchariya-Abu Dhabi Doubles Development Fund Capital To Dhs16bn

The capital of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has been doubled to Dhs16 billion from Dhs8 billion, according to a new ruling issued by Abu Dhabi’s ruler Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The increased capital will be fully subscribed by the Abu Dhabi government, reported official news agency WAM.

The new ruling amends some provisions of law no. (10) of 1999, concerning the establishment of ADFD, stated the report.

Under the new law, the activities of the fund have also been expanded to include the entire UAE, along with maintaining ADFD’s “fundamental role in achieving the state policy to promote the economic development in developing countries.”

ADFD, which is chaired by Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, was established in 1971 as a vehicle to manage the UAE’s humanitarian affairs.

Total loans provided by the fund since its inception until the end of 2012 amounted to Dhs14.90 billion, covering 226 projects. The total value of grants provided by the Abu Dhabi government to projects managed by the fund reached Dhs13.46 billion.

Last year, ADFD also signed an MoU with the Asian Development Bank to increase cooperation between the two regions and develop a framework for co-financing development projects in Asia.

The fund owns stakes in 15 companies across 10 countries, and its total investments stood at Dhs954.04 million at the end of 2012. 

Arun Panchariya-Kuwaitis Head To The Polls For Sixth Time Since 2006

Kuwaitis voted for the sixth time in seven years on Saturday in a parliamentary election boycotted by the main Islamist and populist opposition, which may help liberals and independents win seats.

Turnout was expected to be low in summer temperatures hitting 44 degrees Celsius (111 Fahrenheit) during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, and as Kuwaitis become fed up with voting in short-lived parliaments.

The opposition boycott may produce a parliament more willing to cooperate with the government on economic development than some of its predecessors in a country where political infighting has held up investment.

“Voting is a national duty,” said Mohsen Dashti, a 40-year-old doctor who was casting his vote in a coastal district south of the capital. “We need reconciliation between the parliament and the government as well as a focus on development.”

The oil-producing U.S. ally has the most open political system in the Gulf Arab region. While it has witnessed sizeable street protests in the past two years over local issues, its generous welfare system and relative tolerance of dissent have helped to shield it from Arab Spring-style unrest.

But parliaments have been dissolved time and again, usually for getting too bold in challenging government ministers.

The snap election was triggered by a ruling from the top court in June, which said the process leading up to the last one in December was legally flawed.

Almost constant political upheaval and entrenched bureaucracy have held up major parts of a KD30 billion ($105-billion) development plan announced in 2010 to build a refinery, airport, hospitals, housing and highways.

Kuwaitis say they face housing shortages, clogged roads and an old-fashioned airport despite living in one of the world’s richest countries per capita. They point out that other Gulf states, such as Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, have pushed ahead with bold modernisation projects.

“It is very difficult and it is very depressing for us to have so many elections in such a short time,” said lecturer Wasmeyah al-Abbad after casting her ballot in an upmarket district close to Kuwait City.

Abbad, in her 50s, said the issues important to her were women’s rights, inequality and the dominance of powerful families in politics and the economy: “Men get houses, but women don’t, we don’t get to choose our careers, and some names are dominating positions.”

Campaign themes have included corruption, loan relief and concern over a $4 billion aid package to Egypt after the military overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi.

On Saturday Kuwaitis on Twitter vented frustration at the aid promise, saying the money could be better spent at home.

Kuwait and other Gulf states like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were glad to see the back of Mursi because they are fearful of Islamist influence in their own conservative, dynastically ruled countries.

“WASTE OF TIME”

Polls were open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (0500-1700 GMT) and results are expected early on Sunday.

The mainly Islamist and populist opposition is boycotting in protest against a new voting system announced last October, which cut the number of votes per citizen to one from four, and which it says would prevent it forming a majority in parliament.

In a country where political parties are banned, the old system helped opposition politicians to form alliances by offering reciprocal backing from their supporters.

“The election will lead to a sham parliament that the government will control,” said Mohammad al-Dallal, a former Islamist MP who joined the boycott. He said many Kuwaitis believed the parliament would not last long and be invalidated by a court ruling or by the emir, like previous assemblies.

“Electing such parliaments is a waste of time,” he said.

The government says the voting changes brought Kuwait into line with other countries and will ensure stability.

Saturday’s vote will elect a 50-member assembly which can pass legislation and interrogate government ministers. But the 84-year-old emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, has the final say in state matters and can dissolve parliament.

The emir courted groups unhappy about the new voting system and encouraged several powerful tribes to endorse the election. That led to splits in the opposition, with liberals deciding to run as well as Salafi Islamists, who support the austere form of Islam practised in Saudi Arabia.

Arun Panchariya- Dubai, UAE residents have no gender preference for babies

More than half of the 760 Nabd Al Arab survey respondents say they have no preference when it comes to the gender of their baby.
The results are a reflection of the growing opportunities for women in the country, says Dr Souad Al Oraimi, a professor of gender and development at UAE University.

"It means that now parents consider the two genders equal," Dr Al Oraimi says. "Women are now capable of taking care of themselves. They have access to education, they can work and fulfil their potential, so they are equally valued by society."

Twenty-six per cent of respondents show a preference for a baby boy and 16 per cent for a baby girl. The other 58 per cent give no preference.
"These are really impressive results," says Rima Sabban, an assistant sociology professor at Zayed University.

"It shows that the woman's active role is being recognised. Society is getting modernised and women can now generate money to help the family.
"At the end of the day they're making a difference, so there's no reason why someone would choose a boy over a girl."

But men's and women's preferences were very different.
Thirty per cent of men say they would rather have a baby boy compared with 21 per cent of women, while only 12 per cent of men show preference for a girl, against 24 per cent of women.

But Dr Oraimi says that the numbers should be approached with caution.
"I still see a preference for boys in our society," she says. "This is part of the traditional thinking and the only thing that can change this is time.
"It all depends on how quickly society develops and the UAE is moving rapidly."

A 2011 Gallup survey of more than 1,000 respondents in the US showed 40 per cent of respondents would prefer a boy to a girl if they were only to have one child.

Arun Panchariya-Worries over rise in eating disorders in the UAE

Three-quarters of young Emiratis suffer with body issues, and one in five of those need clinical intervention, a study suggests.

The number of sufferers from anorexia and bulimia has increased in recent years, mainly among teenage girls, said Sana Karim, head of student counselling at the Ministry of Education.
While ministry psychologists visit schools to deal with behavioural issues, including eating disorders, she said it was vital for parents and teachers to look for the signs.
“There are certain symptoms you can see as to whether a child is well or not,” she said. “Early on, parents notice children’s habits and teachers see them in class. Some students may seem sleepy in class or may struggle to focus.”
Dr Justin Thomas, from Zayed University, and Sabrina Tahboub-Schoult, from the American University of Sharjah, found the alarming results during a study of 361 undergraduates – 284 women and 77 men.
Their paper has just been accepted by the journal Eating Disorders.
The researchers pinned much of problem on rapid social change, which has affected men and women almost equally. That was a surprise; the team had expected male participants to be less affected.
“Social change brings uncertainty, and eating disorders appear to increase in prevalence as societies move through major sociocultural transitions,” said Dr Thomas.

Top 3 bars in Dubai-Arun panchriya

Siddartha Lounge: 


Rivalling the great Buddha Bar in Tower One, the first of Grosvenor House’s many new ventures is a sleek white, faintly-Eastern themed poolside bar which came into its own over the cool winter months.

Embassy: 


Arriving directly from London, this exclusive supper club was instantly the talk of the town. Split across three stories, it offers thrilling 360° views and trendy lounge feel.

Nell Gwynne: 


With a theme recalling Medieval times, plus a large floor plan, pool table, dartboards, plenty of flatscreen TVs, Dubai’s first Welsh-themed bar has proved an instant hit. 

Reference: timeoutdubai

Dubai is thinking big for 2013

A replica of the Taj Mahal four times larger than the original. An underwater hotel. A 5 sq km complex of homes linked by canals. The world’s biggest mall (again). A crocodile park. If you wanted any proof that Dubai’s economy is back on track following the financial meltdown that shook the world in 2008, one need only look at the list of ambitious new developments announced over the past 12 months. Many of the proposals have had seasoned expats whispering ‘it’s like 2006 all over again’, with a look of both excitement and desperation in their eyes.

There’s no denying that the new developments – sublime, ridiculous, beautiful, thrilling and garish as they each might be – will be a marvel to watch evolve in front of our eyes. But for those who lived through the sky-high property prices of Dubai’s 2006-2008 boom (a time when general inflation alone soared to 10.8 percent by 2008), a sense of anxiety may be somewhat justified. With this recent recovered economic confidence, Dubai has also seen property and rental prices soar – most of the sales and letting firms we spoke to reported that property prices in prime areas have soared by as much as 25 percent over the past 12 months, with rental prices rising by up to 15 percent. ‘When 2008 hit, I thought it would take six years to recover,’ says Priyesh Patel, a sales director with real estate firm Aston Pearl. ‘Yet it only took three years.’

Reference:Time Out Dubai

Best 3 Malls of Dubia UAE- Arun Panchariya

Burjuman Centre

Burjuman is the home of high end fashion in Dubai; host to all the best brands money can buy such as Louis Vuitton, Cartier and Bvlgari to name a few. BurJuman is the height of shopping luxury in Dubai. Beyond the exclusive luxury brands, there are also some great ready to wear items on offer from brands like Guess and DKNY.

There are two parts to the mall, the old and the new. Stick to the older part for the more expensive brands all in one place. There is a play area on the third floor for children, which includes an interactive fountain. The mall is made up of sunny courtyards and impressive gardens, giving it a distinctive outdoor feel. There are great restaurants and cafes to choose form if you need a break form all the shopping. Parking is easy to find, there are plenty of spaces underground, and a taxi rank just outside the complex.

Deira City Centre

Located on the waterfront, Deira City Centre is known for it’s friendly service. Many shoppers are surprised to be greeted with a smile and a complimentary bottle of water. What a great relief from the hot sun of Dubai! There are over 350 stores with a diverse range of merchandise. You’ll find all of the great fashion brands, as well as electronics, jewellery and local specialities such as silk, cashmere and oriental rugs. It’s a great place for jewellery with 33 dedicated stores.

Jumeirah Plaza

Centrally located and close to many of the major hotels, Jumeirah Plaza is certainly one of the most convenient malls to visit. Opened in 1994, by Dubai standards it’s one of the older malls, although it’s still very much worth a visit. There are all the international brands you expect as well as jewellery, home wares and quite a lot of watch showrooms.

Don’t miss TGI Fridays fro a great steak and some happy hour mocktails! There is also office space, a hotel and furnished apartments that are part of the complex. A large exhibition centre plays host to a wide range of activities throughout the year, from fun interactive things for kids to art shows to cultural events. Many locals prefer to shop at Jumeirah Plaza as opposed to some of the larger malls as it is often less crowded.

Top 3 Dubai Architectures by Arun panchariya

Burj Al Arab

The Burj Al Arab (Arabic: برج العرب, "Tower of the Arabs") is a luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates managed by the Jumeirah Group and built by Said Khalil. It was designed by Tom Wright of WS Atkins PLC. At 321 metres (1,053 ft), it is the tallest building used exclusively as a hotel. However, the Rose Tower, also in Dubai, which has already topped Burj Al Arab's height, will take away this title upon its opening in April 2008. The Burj Al Arab stands on an artificial island 280 metres (919 ft) out from Jumeirah beach, and is connected to the mainland by a private curving bridge. It is an iconic structure, designed to symbolize Dubai's urban transformation and to mimic the billowing sail of a boat.

Burj Dubai


Burj Dubai (Arabic: برج دبي "Dubai Tower") is a supertall skyscraper currently under construction in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. When it is completed in late 2008, it is predicted to be the tallest man-made structure in the world, as well as the tallest building by any measure. Scheduled for occupancy in September 2009, the building is part of a 2 km² (0.8 sq mi) development called 'Downtown Burj Dubai' and is located at the "First Interchange" (aka "Defence Roundabout") along Sheikh Zayed Road at Doha Street.
The building is being built mainly by a South Korean company Samsung, along with the Belgian company Besix and the UAE company Arabtec. It was designed by American Adrian Smith before he left Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP (SOM) of Chicago to start his own independent practice, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture in October 2006. However, SOM continues to lead the architectural, structural engineering and mechanical engineering of Burj Dubai. The total budget for the Burj Dubai project is about $4.1 billion US and for the entire new 'Downtown Burj Dubai', $20 billion US.

Dubai Marina

Dubai Marina is a district in the heart of what has recently become known as 'new Dubai', in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It is located at 25°4′52.86″N, 55°8′38.67″E on Interchange 5 between Jebel Ali Port and the area which hosts Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and the American University in Dubai. The first phase of this project has been completed.

Reference: dubai-architecture info

Airports across UAE affected by more early morning fog

DUBAI // Early morning fog blanketed the country for the third consecutive day yesterday causing yet more problems for air passengers

Eight flights coming into Abu Dhabi International Airport were diverted to alternative airports in the UAE and Oman. One flight went to Dubai, one to Muscat, three to Al Ain and a further three to Sharjah.

However, a spokeswoman for Abu Dhabi International Airport said there had been no cancellations yesterday due to the fog.

The budget carrier flydubai said a number of flights had been delayed or cancelled because of the weather and offered full refunds and free re-bookings to passengers affected by the delays and cancellations.

A statement from Dubai Airports said: “Foggy conditions and the backlog of delayed flights from Wednesday resulted in the cancellation of 20 flights at Dubai International.

Sur Kshetra grand finale takes over Dubai

The grand finale of Sur Kshetra was held at the World Trade Centre in Dubai. The show brought together popular names from Indian and Pakistani music — Ismail Darbar, Suresh Wadkar, Janab Ghulam Ali Sahab and Sajjad Ali — along with the jury — singers Asha Bhosle, Abida Parveen and Runa Laila.

The evening opened with incredible performances by the finalists — Diljaan, Yash Raj, Nabeel and Mulazim.There were power-packed performances by the mentors — Himesh Reshammiya and Atif Aslam — and Runa Laila as well.

Host Ayesha Takia kept the contestants’ spirits high as the competition got fierce with a final face-off over a medley of songs. The grand finale also saw performances by the ex-contestants. Watch the grand finale of Videocon presents Sur Kshetra, powered by Dabur Amla Hair Oil, on December 29, 2012, at 10pm only on Colors.

Reference: Arun Panchariya Dubai

Fake Primark store spotted in Dubai

With such a miniscule percentage of the world’s fashion lovers actually able to afford Louis Vuitton and Chanel, we can comprehend – though don’t condone – a demand for counterfeit versions of their designs.
But in news that baffles us, Women’s Wear Daily report that a fake Primark has been located in Dubai. Yes, you are reading that right. Not Prada, Primark: the pile ‘em high, sell ‘em cheap, ask-no-questions purveyor of the fastest fashion on earth (the ones not shy of ‘paying homage’ to labels further up the foodchain themselves).

Nestled on Bank Street in the country’s Bur Dubai district, the store bearing the name of the Irish high street chain was first brought to the attention of Primark’s owners, Associated British Foods, by happy shoppers calling to congratulate executives on their latest opening.
ABF are now “considering their legal options” according to a spokeswoman: “We are aware that there is a store in Dubai that purports to be part of our group. Primark does not operate any stores there and this is therefore not a legitimate Primark store”.

Refrence: Arun Panchariya Dubai

Dubai to build replica of Taj Mahal

Dubai has unveiled plans for a £665 million reproduction of the Taj Mahal that will not only be four times bigger than the 17th century original but contain a shopping centre, a 300-room five-star hotel, serviced apartments and bridal wear stores.

Not content with the constructing the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, the sail-shaped Burj al Arab hotel and a palm tree-shaped archipelago of luxury properties, developers in the Gulf city want to use the Taj Arabia project to attract wedding business.

The aim is to complete the project in two years, compared to the 22 years it took to build the marble mausoleum at Agra dedicated by the Indian emperor Shah Jahan to his third wife Mumtaz.

Developers hope it will be known as the “New City of Love”.

“Imagine if this immaculate tribute to love could be the setting for the milestone event in the life of a man and woman,” says the voice greeting visitors to the project’s website. “This dream will soon become reality.”

Arun Mehra, chairman of Link Global Group, one of the developers involved in the project, told the Xpress newspaper.

Reference: Arun Panchariya Dubai

The famous Jumeria beach of Dubai- Arun Panchariya dubai

Lets have some snapshots of famous Jumeria beach of dubai.



Dubai: Jumaria Beach  by ArunPanchariya

Top 5 companies to work for in dubai-Arun Panchariya dubai

The Great Place to Work Institute, a global research and management consultancy that recognises the best workplaces in over 45 countries worldwide, today released its inaugural list of ‘Top Companies to Work for in the UAE’.


1. Microsoft
www.microsoft.com<http://www.microsoft.com>
Technology
Employees certainly benefit from Microsoft’s “worklife balance charter”, “onboarding roadmap” for new hires, and Gulf-based “employee experience” committee, but Microsoft also supports employees’ efforts in getting involved in the community providing them three days each year to give back.


2 Fed Ex

www.fedex.com http://www.fedex.com
Transportation

FedEx’s corporate philosophy of People-Service-Profit fosters the type of working environment that develops and rewards its employees while focusing on customer needs.

3 Pepsi Co Asia, Middle East & Africa

www.pepsico.com http://www.pepsico.com
Food & Beverage

PepsiCo values are not only communicated, but are also audited to check for compliance and integration into their culture so that they know if they are doing well against their Values.

4 Marriott

www.marriott.com http://www.marriott.com
Hospitality

Marriott has a distinct culture where it inspires every employee to perform through its “Spirit to Serve” program.

5 Merck Serono

www.merck.de http://www.merck.de
Pharmaceuticals

Every year, all of the employees of Merck from across the region come together for four or five days at an exotic location to celebrate their successes, develop teamwork, and plan for the future.

Reference: http://www.emirates247.com