Regular readers of this blog will know that I have been to Dubai a couple of times over the past few years, most recently in March 2010 (see Dubai: Notes From A City At The Cross Roads) and have commented several times on the emirate’s financial crisis. Well, now I have come back from another… [Read more]
Dear Diary, I went to the World Commodities Week conference yesterday, which focused on China. There were some important points to take away: Growth The survival of the leadership in China is based on delivering growth. As such, while China will slow in 2011 (though not below 7%), it will likely rebound in 2012 before… [Read more]
New property market cooling measures announced by China’s State Council on April 15 seek to curb speculative demand for real estate by raising down payment requirements and mortgage rates, while giving local government officials the responsibility for failing to stabilise property prices. If the measures work, which I think they might, then property prices in… [Read more]
While I had not been pencilling in another interest rate hike this year, the Reserve Bank Of Australia (RBA)’s decision to raise its policy rate by 25 basis points (bps) for a third consecutive month to 3.75% on Tuesday was not wholly unexpected. Indeed, Business Monitor Online stated on November 30 that the risks were… [Read more]
Suggestions of a technical default on November 26 by UAE-based Dubai World have sent shockwaves through the financial world. Not only are creditworthiness concerns reaching boiling point, but global equity markets, too, seem to initially have gone into panic mode. Business Monitor’s Liz Martins and Terry Alexander discuss the implications of a debt default by… [Read more]
Around this time last year, I blogged about the correlation between the completion of skyscrapers and recessions. Having just returned from the UAE, which is getting ready to open the spectacular Burj Dubai in December, I can confirm the relationship remains in place. Certainly, the opening of the tower doesn’t mark the beginning of the… [Read more]
Due to popular demand following my blog piece on skyscrapers and recessions last week, I have humbly agreed to take a closer look at one of Latin America’s outstanding success stories in recent years: the Panamanian property market. Back in the liquidity-drenched days of early 2007 (remember them?!), my colleagues at Business Monitor crowned Panama… [Read more]
