Great rulers of Dubai

I have taken this pic from my iphone and uploading it this place under business bay brigde


-- Post From My iPhone

Dubai population may decrease by 8%

A report by Swiss Bank UBS estimates that the population in Dubai will decline 8 per cent this year.

According to this research, Dubai’s real sector which has slowed down significantly, employs about half the city’s workforce. It predicts up to 20 per cent of workers in this sector will lose their jobs in 2009 and 10 per cent in 2009, which will cause Dubai’s population to fall by 8 per cent and 2 per cent in 2009 and 2010 respectively.



It started in November with the developer Nakheel laying off 500 people. Since then several companies have started making their employess redundant. The number is 3,200 people so far according to Gulf News.

UAE masjid goes Hi Tech

The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowment (GAIAE), through the leadership of His Highness, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of the UAE, is set to implement the very first centralised digital signage system in mosques across the UAE in order to promote awareness of Islamic moderation in line with the country’s strategic plan. Alpha Data, a leading systems integrator, has been chosen to deploy the system. A replicating software has been installed that will distribute information for the signage from a central location.
In the first phase, Alpha Data is set to change the software and GSM module of the existing LCD screens from 300 mosques across the UAE. In the second phase, Alpha Data will install 250 LCD screens in mosques across the country which will be controlled from a central location via a replicating software which organises content and distribution.

These LCD screens will display

specific occasions,

prayer timings,

verses,

morals and greetings,

these LCD screens will also be used to present live lectures from main mosques in the country

It will also serve as video conference facilities for the imam’s meetings.

Each LCD screen has a built-in PC facility and GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) module and will be connected to the main server located in the control room at the GAIAE office. All information entered in the main server will automatically be updated on every LCD in the mosques nationwide.
Well I hope it doesn't disturb the worshippers .

source

Dubai commercial rents start to slow down

Rents in Dubai’s commercial real estate sector are showing the first signs of levelling off, according to research from CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), the world’s largest commercial real estate services company.

“We are seeing now for the first time a drop of commercial rental prices. Property purchase prices have been coming down for some time now, but rents had until now been holding strong,” managing director Nick Maclean said.

Prime rents in each of the three main commercial real estate sectors – industrial, office and retail, remained static in the fourth quarter of 2008, after a period of very strong growth since 2007.

Dubai retailers are blaming high rents in the city’s malls for prices that are now up to 50 percent higher than in Europe and North America.

Smart road humps in dubai

Smart road humps will be the next hurdle to overcome for criminals who consider themselves innovative and strap weapons and drugs underneath their vehicles to dodge the law.

The humps, fitted with four digital cameras, were on display for the first time at the Intersec exhibition and conference at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

"The cameras can capture very detailed images from underneath the cars, along with providing the date and time when the cars were driven over the humps," said K. Sankaranarayanan, head of marketing, Mahindra Logisoft.

Sankaranarayanan pointed out that as the cameras would be installed at a safe distance inside the hump, there would be no danger of them getting damaged. "The smart humps are an innovation from the old technology because it provides high visibility and accurate information," he said, adding that this unique technology would be most suitable for use at hotel entrances and high-security zones.

"The device analyses digital phones and if someone is eavesdropping, the soundwaves will shoot up on the display screen, indicating the line has been tapped," said Winningham.-gulf news

No increase in rents -a bit relief

Rents for Dubai tenants whose contracts were signed in 2008 cannot be raised this year so long as the rent in 2008 is equal to or up to 25 per cent lower than the average market rate, according to a decree issued on Monday.

According to decree No 1 for 2009 issued by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, rents for both residential and non-residential properties in Dubai whose contracts were signed in 2008 cannot be increased in 2009 so long as the rent in 2008 is equal to or up to 25 per cent lower than the average market rate.

The new decree includes a mechanism to deal with low rents, where rents for the current year can be raised as long as the rent for 2008 was up to 25 per cent less than the average market rate.

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Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaibani, Director of the Dubai Ruler's Court, said Shaikh Mohammad's decree aims to curb the soaring rents in Dubai and bring them to reasonable levels.

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Top Searched Terms of 2008 In UAE-Google Zeitgeist

Each of these lists shows either the fastest rising searches and most popular searches. The most popular searches mean these were the top searched terms of 2008 in UAE. While the other categories (restaurants, concert tickets, vacation destinations and famous people) were the fastest rising search terms that saw the largest spike in searches during 2008 in UAE

Fastest Rising

1. بكين 2008 (beijing 2008)
2. ناصر بن زايد (nasser bin zayed)
3. facebook
4. bahrain air
5. obama
6. هانا مونتانا (hannah montana)
7. يوتيوب (youtube)
8. emirates id
9. atlantis dubai
10. heath ledger

Most Popular

1. dubai
2. uae
3. الامارات (the emirates)
4. العاب (toys)
5. دبي (dubai)
6. صور (images)
7. news
8. أغاني (songs)
9. youtube
10. games

Top Economic Terms

1. uae economy إقتصاد الإمارات
2. indian economy
3. إقتصاد الكويت (economy of kuwait)
4. world economy
5. inflation
6. recession
7. النفط (oil)
8. economy of japan
9. imf
10. gold price

Vacations (Fastest Rising)

1. hawaii
2. الفجيرة (fujairah)
3. maldives
4. greece
5. النمسا (austria)
6. لبنان (lebanon)
7. thailand
8. turkey
9. صلالة (salalah)
10. italy

Famous People (Fastest Rising)

1. ناصر بن زايد (nasser bin zayed)
2. obama
3. heath ledger
4. miley cyrus
5. تامر حسني (tamer husni)
6. راشد الماجد (rashid al majid)
7. rihanna
8. اليسا (elissa)
9. العفاسي (al afassi)
10. فيروز (fairuz).

Google Zeitgeist 2008 website

Uae topped at Arab Information and Communications Technology

The UAE topped the 2007 Arab Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Use Index with a score of 2.19 and became the only country in the Arab World to break through the index's 2.00 barrier, according to a survey conducted by Madar Research Group and Orient Planet.

Mobile phone subscriptions in the region registered a 40.51 per cent growth in 2007, helping sustain the significant progress in ICT adoption in the Arab economies, whose ICT Use Index increased to 0.83 in 2007, rising 30.21 per cent from the previous year.

Gulf countries meanwhile registered 43.93 million mobile subscriptions in 2007, up 40.04 per cent over the previous year.

In terms of computer penetration, the UAE has maintained the No 1 position, recording 26.44 per cent rate with 1.58 million installed computers. Qatar followed with 26.32 per cent and 352,000 installations.

Source

Dubai's property bursts

"There is fear the worst is yet to come as a glut of properties arrives on the market. About 70,000 units are scheduled for completion in 2009, more than half were originally planned for 2008 or even earlier, according to a September report from EFG-Hermes. Buyers willing to commit to purchases before construction are harder to find now. Before the credit crunch, speculators accounted for 50 percent of the market." yousef abdulla

Banks have tightened lending or frozen it altogether. Amlak Finance PJSC, one of the biggest mortgage lenders in the UAE, announced on November 19 that it had suspended new home loans. London-based Lloyds TSB Group Plc stopped offering mortgages for apartments in Dubai on November 11 and reduced the amount it will lend for villas from 80 percent to 50 percent of the price. This has naturally had a negative effect on property values. For instance, in November, the cost of a seven-bedroom villa on Palm Jumeirah dropped to 19 million dirhams ($5.2 million), still an exorbitant price, down from 30 million dirhams in September, according to the Dubai unit of German real estate company Engel & Voelkers AG.

Read full story

Al Futtaim Group has delayed Work on Dubai Festival City

The developer of Dubai Festival City, Al Futtaim Group Real Estate has delayed works on part of the development, to take advantage of fall in construction costs.A company spokesman yesterday revealed that the company was being more cautious in reviewing the Dh.11billion residential, entertainment and business hub, where the construction began in 2003 and is likely to be completed in phases over 20 years.

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Dubai population loss in 2009 estimated

The estimate by Swiss investment bank UBS that the Dubai population will decline by eight per cent in 2009, with a net loss of 8,000 per month, is proving highly controversial.
In the Emirates Business newspaper today the Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department notes that in the past two months arrivals have far out numbered departures, with 86,000 arriving in December and 113,000 in November.

Read the full story

60% Drop in Dubai real estate prices soon

Dubai real estate prices could fall as much as 60 per cent in 2009 from their peaks in July last year, while Abu Dhabi may slide as much as 20 per cent, Shuaa Capital said on Sunday. Real estate prices have fallen by around 40 per cent in Dubai and by around 15 per cent in Abu Dhabi from their peaks last year, Roy Cherry, vice president, research at the Dubai-based investment bank told reporters on Sunday, adding that rents in Dubai are likely to fall some 20 per cent in the next two years. “Dubai is seeing a negative growth in demand for real estate,” Cherry said

Read the full story here

Dubai Nakheel tower postponed due to crisis

Construction of a one-kilometer-tall tower slated to be the world's tallest has been delayed by its government-owned developer, in a sign of how a city that seemed to have limitless resources and ambition now is struggling to avoid a hard crash.

The developer, Nakheel, said Wednesday it has postponed construction on the tower as the company readjusts its plans "to better reflect the current market trends and match supply with demand."

The Nakheel Tower is a $38 billion commercial and residential project.

WS Atkins Plans 210 Job Cuts in Dubai

Residential property values in Dubai dropped 8 percent in the fourth quarter from the prior three months, with the number of transactions falling 45 percent, property adviser Colliers CRE Plc said Jan. 13

WS Atkins Plc, the U.K.’s biggest engineering-design company, plans to cut 210 jobs at its Middle East operations as the region’s construction industry slows and clients defer or cancel projects.

Atkins is talks with 170 staff at its Dubai office and 40 at its Manila branch in the Philippines, which serves the Middle East, spokesman Ben Thompson said today. The affected workers are mainly in its building design business, he said.

Construction companies across the United Arab Emirates are struggling to finance developments and sell real estate after credit dried up and a five-year surge in property prices ended. Atkins, which employs about 2,000 staff in Dubai, was hit by deferred work on projects such as Nakheel PJSC’s Trump Tower and Tameer Holding’s turbine-shaped Anara Tower, Thompson said.

Bloomberg

Dubai world sheds 10 percent of jobs

A government-owned investment company in Dubai says it is shedding 10 percent of staff in response to the economic downturn.

Istithmar World said Sunday it is cutting the 13 jobs because of "external market conditions" and to match its resources with its current needs.

The company says it is confident of its investment strategy and plans to "reallocate resources to areas where we see potential."

Analysts have warned that Dubai's large debt load could force the booming city-state to slow its growth in response to the global economic crisis.

One of Istithmar's sister companies, developer Nakheel, late last year cut 15 percent of its work force and slowed work on a number of high-profile projects.

Abondoned cars in dubai

65 cars were abandoned at Dubai airport and seized by the police by the end of 2008

22 cars were removed from Dubai airport by police “recently”

1450 cars were claimed back by banks in 2007 (not just abandoned at the airport) - about 28 cars per week

3200+ cars were claimed by banks in 2008 - about 60 cars per week.

More than 3,000 cars have been abandoned by owners to escape loan payments, just over double the figure in 2007, a senior police official has revealed.

Police recently removed 22 cars dumped at Dubai International Airport after owners fled the country leaving a trail of debt behind. Cars have also been abandoned at Abu Dhabi International Airport.

In Dubai last year 3,241 cars were claimed by the banks, he said. Of these 466 had been impounded by police. “The percentage of such incidences rose last year. In 2007, 1,450 cars were claimed by banks. In 2008, the number increased by 123 per cent,” said Col Saif Muhair Al Mazrouei, deputy director of traffic department at Dubai Police.

he said. “A lot of times people just leave. You get a credit card and loans and then you lose your job. What to do? Go home. It’s something that all banks are facing.
The seized cars will end up as lots in an auction or on the floor of car showrooms. Golden Belt, an auction house based in Al Aweer, Dubai, holds car auctions every week where many cars taken back by banks are sold off. Among them are expensive sports cars such as Porsches and BMWs.

private source said, that around 460 cars were found parked with keys inside, in Dubai Airport parking lot, which assumes of people terminated who fled the country leaving these cars.

How many more will it be ?

via source and source2

Burj dubai Helicopter view

Amazing view on the highest building in the world.Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building a record of 818m metres height and the building, the centrepiece of Emaar’s US$20 billion Downtown Burj Dubai project.In 2008, Burj Dubai achieved the distinction of being the world’s tallest structure surpassing the KVLY-TV mast (628.8 meters; 2,063 ft) in North Dakota, USA. The tower is already taller than Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which at 508 metres (1,667 ft) was the tallest building in the world when it opened in 2004. Burj Dubai also surpassed the 31-year-old record of CN Tower, which at 553.33 metres (1,815.5 ft) has been the world’s tallest free-standing structure on land since 1976.
Image from trek earth

workers laid off of in dubai

The Dubai Ministry of Labour has been flooded with thousands of labour complaints, as a very big number of workers and employees have been laid off, or have been made redundant in the wake of the global financial crisis. The majority of these workers are Indians. Furthermore, it is estimated that about 1,500 work permits and visas are being canceled in Dubai each day.Feeling the pinch of global slowdown many companies, mainly in the construction sector, have stopped all new employment and most of them have already laid off hundreds of workers. What is more worrying, however, is the fact some companies is flagrantly violating labour laws by not paying workers their wages, or by forcing them to take unpaid leave. Dozens of companies have given redundant employees a grace period of two to three months to look for alternative work. Jobs are, however, rare to find with most companies freezing recruitment.According to unofficial estimates, the Ministry of Labour cancels on average 1500 working permits and visas a day. At the same time, the Ministry has to examine an unprecedented number of complaints from workers. The complaints have to be processed before the working permit is cancelled.