larry johnson takes us to the gulf; 

 

Before diving into the latest analytical piece from Karl Miller, just a comment on President Lula’s surprising victory in the just concluded presidential election in Brazil. The betting markets favored Bolsonaro and quite a few people lost money betting on his victory (but the bookies are happy). Lula’s victory means that BRICS remains intact and that Donald Trump took a beating. Is this a harbinger of what awaits Trump on 3 November? Now, on to Karl Miller.

For two decades the United Arab Emirates sold the world a fantasy: an oasis of glass towers, infinity pools and duty-free gold, floating serenely above the chaos of the Middle East. Book your stopover, the ads said. Nothing bad ever happens here.

Karl Miller’s latest assessment of the UAE economy, dated October 25, reads like the customer reviews after the brochure promises didn’t pan out. One star. Fewer guests than advertised. Beach closed due to crude oil. Please bring your own water.

Where did everybody go?

Let’s start with the tourists, or rather the lack of them. From January through August, Dubai recorded 6.97 million international overnight visitors. In the same period last year it had 12.54 million. That is 5.57 million fewer visits, a drop of 44 percent. It turns out that “within drone range of Iran” is not a selling point in the travel brochures..........more.........