Tag Archives: dubai investment news
Middle East is ripe for aviation investment
The Middle East has the most potential when it comes to aviation investment, a new survey has suggested.Conducted by Airport Show ahead of next month's inaugural Global Airport Leaders' Forum, the study sought to find out which parts of the world have the brightest future in air travel.It emerged that 64.4 per cent of the respondents felt the Middle East was the best place to invest, making the region an emphatic overall winner. The next most popular area was Asia-Pacific, which only amassed 16.7 per cent of the vote.Experts predict that US$90 billion (AED 330.5 billion) will be pumped into the Middle Eastern aviation sector by 2020 and up to 400 million passengers will fly into and out of this part of the world every year by this point.”Senior executives from across the international aviation industry have contributed to the survey and we believe the survey results will contribute significantly to the important discussions at the Global Airport Leaders' Forum and help highlight the key challenges and opportunities industry leaders face today,” commented Daniyal Qureshi, event director of the Airport Show.Unsurprisingly, Dubai is central to the Middle East's expansion plans and the city is expected to accommodate just under a quarter of the region's air traffic by the end of the decade.Dubai International Airport officially became the second-busiest aviation hub on the planet last month, behind only London's Heathrow.The facility has recently been expanded and has a capacity of 75 million passengers a year – up from 60 million in 2012.Around 66 million people are expected to use the complex in 2013 and this figure will go up and up as the years pass by.To help take some of the strain off the main airport, services will be launched at Dubai World Central Airport from October this year for the first time.The passenger terminal was finished in 2012 and it has room for up to seven million people each year. Continue reading
The First Team’s football star Owen announces retirement
The First Group’s sporting ambassador Michael Owen reveals he’ll step down from professional football at the end of the season Dubai, UAE: English footballing hero and First Team member, Michael Owen, has recently announced he is to retire from professional football. The 33 year old former Liverpool, Manchester United and Real Madrid striker who currently plays for Stoke City, will hang up his football boots at the end of this season. “It is with an immense amount of pride that I am announcing my intention to retire from Professional Football at the end of this season,” said Owen in a statement. “Having progressed through the ranks at Liverpool to make my first team debut at 17, before embarking upon spells at Real Madrid, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Stoke City, not to mention representing my country on 89 occasions, I now feel it is the right time to bring the curtain down on my career.” BBC Sports Personality and European footballer of the year, Owen first played for the senior England team in 1998, becoming England’s youngest player and goalscorer at that time. He is also the only player to have scored in four major tournaments for England and is the country’s tenth most-capped player and fourth leading goalscorer behind Sir Bobby Charlton, Gary Lineker and Jimmy Greaves. “Michael has had an outstanding career and we wish him every success for his future,” commented Danny Lubert, co-founder and joint chairman of The First Group. “It is a real honour to have such a sporting legend on board with us and we are delighted to confirm that he will continue to be a part of The First Team.” As well as being a brand ambassador for The First Group, Owen is a property owner at The Diamond and The Bridge in Dubai Sports City. He is part of a host of sporting celebrities on The First Team; including fellow footballers Nwankwo Kanu and Andriy Shevchenko, Russian Tennis star, Svetlana Kutznetsova and a Rugby player, Bryan Habana. Continue reading
Tech free zones report sharp upturn in demand
Leaders of two of Dubai's leading technology business parks have confirmed the demand for tenancies in the area is spiralling upwards.Dubai Internet City (DIC) and Dubai Outsource Zone (DOZ) reported growth of 15 per cent in 2012, with 160 companies signing up for office space in one of the two clusters throughout the year.Some of the world's most recognisable technology firms increased their presence in the Middle East in the last 12 months and it is no shock to learn that DIC and DOZ chiefs are very optimistic about the future.”2012 was a particularly strong year for our cluster. Not only did we welcome some of the industry's biggest players such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Interglobe, we also saw the expansion of existing partners,” commented Malek Al Malek, managing director of both free zones.Mr Al Malek added that he was particularly keen to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have moved into the parks to flourish.”The support and nurturing of SMEs and entrepreneurs has also been a key area of focus for us in 2012 and will continue to be in 2013,” he continued.Dubai has quickly emerged as an important global hub when it comes to technology.A number of high-profile exhibitions and conferences held by leading organisations such as Gartner have been staged in the emirate in recent years and the Middle East is a market that technology providers can no longer afford to ignore.Last month, senior figures at the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority revealed that the park brought in profits of AED 165.4 million last year, which was a 26 per cent improvement on 2011.Chairman of the park Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum said there had been a “strategic effort” to attract the biggest and best multinational corporations to the Gulf.All told, 711 companies operate from the Dubai Silicon Oasis and this number is expected to rise sharply in the coming years. Continue reading
