The Gulf: Nothing succeeds like excess
by Rodger Shanahan
-
6 January 2010 9:58AM
While those of you who have returned from the coast or overseas are counting the cost of your holiday, spare a thought for the poor citizens of the Gulf Arab states, some of whom are forced to get by on an average per capita GDP of a little over US$70,000.
The UAE's US$52,000 figure gives it the Arab world's second highest per capita GDP, but this figure doesn't tell the entire truth. The UAE's figure is skewed by the oil wealth of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, which had to give a lending hand to neighbouring Dubai not once but twice last year as the bottom fell out of the over-priced Dubai property market.
Which makes yesterday's opening of the world's tallest building in the emirate where the property market has crashed somewhat anomalous, although the re-naming of the tower from Burj Dubai to Burj Khalifa (after the president of the UAE and ruler of Abu Dhabi) is anything but anomalous.
Photo by Flickr user saharsh, used under a Creative Commons license.
