An influx of Arab expatriates into Dubai has helped drive car sales to record highs.
Ford Middle East and Audi have boosted sales in the country as wealthy Arabs flee from the economic and political turmoil in the region, particularly in Syria and Egypt.
"There seems to be a lot of wealthy expats moving to Dubai from various nationalities who seem to like the Audi brand," said Trevor Hill, the managing director of Audi Middle East.
Sales of Audi cars grew 16.4 per cent last year in the region, while Ford enjoyed a 10 per cent year on year sales growth with 55 per cent growth in the UAE alone.
Higher disposable incomes from government stimulus packages in the GCC are expected to further drive up sales for car manufacturers.
"We have markets with high expat ratio and markets with high local ratio," said Felix Weller, the director of sales at Audi Middle East. "Our percentage of customer groups have not changed, but we have increased our sales expectations [as a result]."
Audi is looking to double sales in the Middle East region by 2020 as it invests US$100 million (Dh367.3m) in seven new projects this year. The German manufacturer sold 1.455 million cars last year worldwide, of which 9,155 were from the Middle East. China is the company's biggest market, followed by Germany and the United States.
Currently, the Middle East region ranks 21st in Audi's sales. The company is aiming to make it into the top 20 within the next two years.
"There is a very strong car culture here with multiple cars per family, which is great in terms of selling volume," said Mr Hill. "The trend of car business is moving to the East, starting with the Middle East, India and China. That's where there is still a lot of volume."
The UAE, and particularly Dubai, has become a destination for the world's car manufacturers, according to Mr Hill.
Audi's biggest showroom in the world is on Dubai's Sheikh Zayed Road.
thamid@thenational.ae
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group C
Liverpool v Red Star Belgrade
Anfield, Liverpool
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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RIDE%20ON
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Zayed Sustainability Prize
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
HWJN
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Bahrain%20GP
%3Cp%3EFriday%20qualifying%3A%207pm%20(8pm%20UAE)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ESaturday%20race%3A%207pm%20(UAE)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETV%3A%20BeIN%20Sports%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
