ABU DHABI // Thousands of fans last night packed into the du Arena to watch the Australian pop superstar Kylie Minogue kick off the Formula One Grand Prix after-race concerts.
Opening with the hit Wow, followed by Spinning Around, Minogue did not disappoint.
"Give it up, Abu Dhabi," she shouted. "I know it's hot here. It might as well get hotter here tonight."
The crowd was filled with fans of all ages but mostly those in their twenties and thirties, who expected her to revisit her hits from the 1980s, such as I Should Be So Lucky and Locomotion.
"I'm a huge fan of Kylie," said Victoria Aitken, a London songwriter and singer. "We've got the same kind of music - danceable pop - and I've also worked with her producer."
Ms Aitken is particularly fond of Minogue's old hits such as Can't Get you Out of my Head.
"She's amazing, talented and a very strong woman," she said.
Natasha Faruque, 33, who works at the London School of Fashion in Dubai, said: "I've been to a lot of her concerts in London because they bring a lot of nostalgia.
"Her songs are upbeat and she has been constantly reinventing herself and does not pretend to be what she's not."
Heba Maad, 15, her sister Hadeel, 17, and their friend Laura Sorani, 16, arrived at the venue at 4pm, five hours before the concert was to start.
"She puts us in the mood to dance," said Heba. "We like to sing, dance and take photos."
"We don't know any of her songs but our father got '2 Friends Friday' tickets," Hadeel said. "We didn't want to waste it. We've come here to enjoy the weekend - and to dance."
In the new '2 Friends Friday' promotion, the first 15,000 local F1 ticket buyers received a pair of complimentary invitations to see Minogue.
Isaac John Dominguez, 25, a civil engineer in Abu Dhabi, was lucky enough to win a pair of Golden Circle tickets for winning a photo contest.
"I like two of her songs, Can't Get you Out of my Head and All the Lovers," Mr Dominguez said. "She's very pretty and a great singer and dancer."
Zelda van der Merwe, 37, her husband Giovanni, 36, and their children Marizel, 12, and Merwede, 13, travelled from Saudi Arabia to attend the race and concerts.
"The kids are not really interested in the races but are excited about the concerts of Kylie, Nickelback and Eminem," said Mrs van der Merwe.
Minogue also sang Come into my World, Two Hearts, Put your Hands Up, and I Can't Get Enough.
rruiz@thenational.ae
The Specs
Price, base Dh379,000
Engine 2.9-litre, twin-turbo V6
Gearbox eight-speed automatic
Power 503bhp
Torque 443Nm
On sale now
Five%20calorie-packed%20Ramadan%20drinks
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERooh%20Afza%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E100ml%20contains%20414%20calories%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETang%20orange%20drink%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E100ml%20serving%20contains%20300%20calories%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECarob%20beverage%20mix%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E100ml%20serving%20contains%20about%20300%20calories%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EQamar%20Al%20Din%20apricot%20drink%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E100ml%20saving%20contains%2061%20calories%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EVimto%20fruit%20squash%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E100ml%20serving%20contains%2030%20calories%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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.”
MO
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreators%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Amer%2C%20Ramy%20Youssef%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Amer%2C%20Teresa%20Ruiz%2C%20Omar%20Elba%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
