Ferrari is looking to usurp the Frankfurt Motor Show crush by launching its 458 Spider to a select audience a week before the start of the German festival of new cars next month.
But those select few are in for a shock. While most people have been expecting a traditional folding cloth roof to steer well clear of the California's market for folding metal roofs, Ferrari found another way.
Sources insist it will drive the 458 Spider down the path it once took with the 575M SuperAmerica with its odd, folding glass roof.
Insiders say the 458 will use a similar roof that will simply flip back 180° when you want sunshine and fresh air. It then sits flat - and upside down - on top of the 458's engine cover.
The chromatic glass system also allows the roof to let in just the right amount of light for the weather conditions, while the 4.5L V8 and the seven-speed twin-clutch gearbox do the rest.
The 458 Spider will replace the F430 Spider, which ended production in 2009. The Frankfurt Motor Show is scheduled to run from September 15 to 25.
Ducati mark Valentino Rossi coup with collection of vivid artworks
Motorsport legend Valentino Rossi is being immortalised in an art collection by Cultwork, an official Ducati licensee.
The nine-time Grand Prix world champion is the focus of five pieces of colourful artwork created by a Polish artist, Patryk Kuleta.
The pieces mark Rossi's arrival in the Ducati team and his return to an Italian motorcycle since 1999. The five are called: The Fight, 46 Reasons, First Ride, Front Runner and Perpetually Stronger.
Cultwork boss Patrick Ashworth said: "Owning a limited edition artwork from the Valentino collection allows fans of Valentino Rossi, Ducati and MotoGP to have a piece of history hanging on the wall of their home or office.
"Each of these artworks are limited to 46 pieces, so only a handful of fans will be fortunate to own one of these incredible artworks, which are available on different media such as canvas, plexiglass, di-bond, crystal or fine art paper."
Rossi joining the Ducati team this year in a historic moment for the Italian motorcycle brand and the new collection is part of the official Ducati Art collection, sold exclusively at Ducatiart.com.
Toyota aims to electrify Nurburgring
Toyota, famous for its staid Prius family of hybrid cars, will try to break that mould with plans to set the lap record for electric vehicles at the Nürburgring's Nordschleife circuit on August 29.
Toyota Motorsport says it has developed a fully electric race car, based on a Radical-style two-seat chassis, with an electric drivetrain capable of a 260kph top speed and acceleration to 100kph in just 3.9 seconds.
The record for electric cars on the 21km circuit is nine minutes 1.388 seconds, set in May by Peugeot with its EX1 concept, which itself knocked off 50 seconds from the previous EV lap record with an average speed of 136kph.
"We are extremely confident we can break the record by some distance, which is an indication of how EV performance is continuously improving," said Rob Leupen, the director of business operations for Toyota Motorsport. "Our mission is to advance this technology, not only in motorsport but in the automotive sector in general, to deliver products with more performance and better durability for our customers."
Toyota also says its car is ideal for a single-make EV race series, hinting that the car maker might have more plans in the works for developing a new series or producing cars for another party.
Luxury brand Cadillac launching new, entry-level model in 2012
General Motors' Cadillac range is about to expand its model line-up next year with a new entry into the compact luxury segment.
The General Motors North America president, Mark Reuss, released a sketch of the model, code-named ATS, recently.
To be released in summer 2012, Cadillac insists the ATS will be a rival for other entry-level luxury cars such as the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and the BMW 3 Series.
The trend in automotive downsizing made Cadillac realise that there was room in its line-up for a smaller car and it is also expected to compete with a premium C-segment from Ford, wearing a Lincoln badge.
The ATS will be produced at Lansing Grand River, the same Michigan assembly plant that builds the award-winning Cadillac CTS saloon, coupe and wagon.
The plant received a $190 million (Dh698 million) investment and 600 jobs were created to support the production of the new model.
Car giant Chrysler appoints Middle Eastern chief executive
A Lebanese graduate of the University of Detroit Mercy has been named the new chief executive of Chrysler/Lancia brands.
Saad Chehab takes over at the helm as part of a strategic development after Fiat became the majority shareholder in June.
Chehab has also been appointed a member of the new group executive council that has been formed in line with the objective of enhancing operational integration of the two companies.
Born in Beirut, Chehab graduated and worked with Ford before joining Chrysler as its head of sales and advertising.
As a result of Chehab's and other Chrysler chiefs' efforts, the company increased sales, paid back loans from the US and Canadian governments ahead of schedule and delivered quarterly profits.
He takes up his post on September 1 and will split his time equally between Italy and the US.
Chrysler recently reported US sales of 112,026 for July 2011 - a 20 per cent increase on last year.
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
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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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
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