A friend of mine recently delivered her first baby – it was a scheduled C-section, so she already knew she was delivering on a Wednesday. And she already knew exactly how she and her husband would be spending their last weekend together, before the pair of them would become a threesome.
They went out for a fancy dinner at a five-star restaurant that doesn’t allow children below the age of 2, they watched a foreign film with some good friends, they scheduled a couple’s massage at a local spa – they went all out with activities other parents told them would have to temporarily be put on hold once a baby was in the picture.
I know another couple who booked themselves on a “babymoon” just a few weeks before the arrival of their baby. A babymoon, as I understand it, used to originally refer to the period of time that new parents spend bonding with their recently arrived child, cut off from the rest of the world, just basking in the beauty of this new life they’ve created.
Well, that’s changed. A babymoon now refers to the last holiday a couple take together before the arrival of their newborn, a sort of final trip (usually at a resort that provides pregnancy massages and lots of yummy treats for the expectant mother).
Mr T and I loved chatting about all the things we’d like to do in those final days before Baby A would decide to join the outside world. A fancy dinner and a great movie were always high on the list, but so were things such as hosting a fun dinner party for friends, or spending a night at an extravagant Dubai hotel, overdoing it on room service.
Those plans never saw the light of day. I am four days away from my due date and I still haven’t found all the items that need to go into my hospital bag. I’m still washing Baby A’s new clothes, still trying to figure out exactly how to install that car seat and I’m still undecided on the right colour of nail polish to pick for my final manicure and pedicure.
As for how Mr T is spending what may be his last weekend before becoming a father (considering Baby A shows up on time and doesn’t put us through the agony of waiting for days, or worse, weeks past the due date), he’s certainly surprised me with his decision. He’s signed up for a Dubai course that teaches participants how to make the most out of the property market.
For two full days, Mr T learnt all about how to become a landlord and invest in property in order to ensure a secondary cash flow that does not rely on a salary. He networked with like-minded individuals, understood the merits of interviewing a prospective tenant and was taught how to read property listings.
Mr T, it seems, is hellbent on arming himself with everything necessary to ensure his family's future, thanks to the impending arrival of our Baby A. And much as I would have enjoyed a babymoon – I hear the expectant mother is often presented with a gift basket of exciting beauty products and delicious snacks upon checkout – I don't mind making sure those hospital bags are packed while my husband works on solidifying our future.
Hala and Mr T welcomed a healthy baby girl to the world yesterday morning
hkhalaf@thenational.ae
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
RESULTS
West Asia Premiership
Thursday
Jebel Ali Dragons 13-34 Dubai Exiles
Friday
Dubai Knights Eagles 16-27 Dubai Tigers
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Remaining fixtures
- August 29 – UAE v Saudi Arabia, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
- September 5 – Iraq v UAE, Amman, Jordan (venue TBC)
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The biog
Born: near Sialkot, Pakistan, 1981
Profession: Driver
Family: wife, son (11), daughter (8)
Favourite drink: chai karak
Favourite place in Dubai: The neighbourhood of Khawaneej. “When I see the old houses over there, near the date palms, I can be reminded of my old times. If I don’t go down I cannot recall my old times.”