2010 Fiat 500

The Italians really have style downpat, don't they? Shoes, suits, even luggage; it all just has a certain flair for design that goes well beyond the norm. It makes me want to be Italian; ciao, bella. And you can certainly count their cars in this equation. Ferraris, Maseratis, Lamborghinis, Alfa Romeos - they are all some of the most beautiful vehicles to grace roads around the world. Really, the Italians are as renowned for their beautiful cars as much as Germans are for their cold, calculating car technology.

And even their small cars get the beauty treatment. For example, take a look at this Fiat 500: first of all, yes, it's tiny. It's a remake of the classic Fiat Cinquecento, the little car that was produced between 1957 and 1975 and loved by just about all of Italy. The new one, while larger than the original, still measures in smaller than a new Mini. But small doesn't mean it lacks style. I think it's a great looking car on the outside. It's a retro design with more than just a nod to the original, but still very modern. Yes, it's one of those cute cars, but it's so stylish I didn't mind being seen in it.

But even better is the interior: again, it's an homage to the original, with a single, large round dial in front of the steering wheel that contains the speedo, the rev counter and all other pertinent information. The model I tested had cloth seats with a fine checkered pattern that was reflected in the door trim, and contrasting red and cream on the dash and steering wheel made the interior really bright and cheerful. This kind of imagination should be used with every car's interior design, considering people spend so much time in them. It was so stylish that I couldn't even fault the use of hard, cheap plastics throughout.

But then I got behind the wheel, and that's when my problems started. No matter how I adjusted the seat - up, down, forward, back - I just couldn't find a comfortable driving position. The seats are positioned very high, so you're sitting as you would in a chair instead of a cockpit with legs outstretched. The steering wheel, which tilts but doesn't telescope, is too far away, and to get a decent grip I had to pull up close and cramp up my legs. Unlike the Mini, this 500 really feels like a small car inside.

But I finally found a position that I could at least control the car from, and with that I turned the key and put it in gear. This is one of the only cars I've ever driven that has turbo lag without having a turbocharger. With a stab of the throttle from a stop, the car begins to roll forward languidly, as if it wasn't the engine at all powering it but a couple of men pushing from behind. When the revs get to around 3,000, the car shoots forward with a start and only then begins to act like a normal vehicle.

And then the gearbox shifts early to second, and with a lurch you're back in the slow lane again. And what a lurch. It's got one of the worst lags between shifts I've experienced, as if it was a manual gearbox driven by someone learning to drive a school bus. But it's an automatic! I eventually just put it into manual shifting mode, which at least helped with keeping the revs up - its 100hp peaks at a rather lofty 6,000rpm. But even shifting sequentially, it was rough, shoving passengers forward and back with each gear change. In the higher gears, as the car's speed increased, it got a bit smoother - marginally so. But it was a real bother ever time I drove it. If I could, I'd just take a manual gearbox.

There is a sport mode, which sharpens the accelerator response and delays shifts and, honestly, I couldn't imagine driving with it off. Only because I did try it off, and the performance was woeful; deactivating sport while driving actually had the car slowing down. I say, press the sport button and never touch it again. But, happily, once it got up to a bit of speed, the car was rather spritely, especially considering the sewing machine-like engine under the bonnet. It could easily keep up with most cars on the road, even at sensible highway speeds (if you can stand its incessant and brain-piercing speed warning beep). And the suspension matches this performance - taking roundabouts is a hoot in this tiny car. And, though the incredibly short wheelbase means it's never going to ride like a luxury car, the ride is surprisingly smooth.

Fiat has targeted this one as an upscale city car, and you get a fairly decent list of options. Bluetooth, a sunroof, MP3 compatibility, an iPod plug-in - the kind of things that would appeal to the young, hip kids that would be buying this car. It's got a good price and, of course, superb fuel economy. There's even a decent-sized boot, but you'd be torturing anyone by putting them in the back seats.

But I know I could never buy one, and you can stop right there before pointing out my lack of "cool kid" credentials. I really, really wanted to like this car, believe me. But my tall person-sized frame is just too much for it. In fact, I even had other people of all shapes - including some with, shall I say, more diminutive statures - try to get comfortable, but none of them could. And the gearbox would just be too much for me to live with daily.

I'll have to settle for those Italian boots instead. nvorano@thenational.ae

The%20Specs%20

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COMPANY PROFILE

Name: N2 Technology

Founded: 2018

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Startups

Size: 14

Funding: $1.7m from HNIs

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

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.”

Asia%20Cup%202022

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Volvo ES90 Specs

Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)

Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp

Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm

On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region

Price: Exact regional pricing TBA

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

England World Cup squad

Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wkt), Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

Specs

Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)

Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)

Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)

The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

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%3Cp%3EEncourage%20innovation%20in%20the%20metaverse%20field%20and%20boost%20economic%20contribution%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20outstanding%20talents%20through%20education%20and%20training%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20applications%20and%20the%20way%20they%20are%20used%20in%20Dubai's%20government%20institutions%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAdopt%2C%20expand%20and%20promote%20secure%20platforms%20globally%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20the%20infrastructure%20and%20regulations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

A MINECRAFT MOVIE

Director: Jared Hess

Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa

Rating: 3/5

The%20trailblazers

%3Cp%3ESixteen%20boys%20and%2015%20girls%20have%20gone%20on%20from%20Go-Pro%20Academy%20in%20Dubai%20to%20either%20professional%20contracts%20abroad%20or%20scholarships%20in%20the%20United%20States.%20Here%20are%20two%20of%20the%20most%20prominent.%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EGeorgia%20Gibson%20(Newcastle%20United)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EThe%20reason%20the%20academy%20in%20Dubai%20first%20set%20up%20a%20girls%E2%80%99%20programme%20was%20to%20help%20Gibson%20reach%20her%20potential.%20Now%20she%20plays%20professionally%20for%20Newcastle%20United%20in%20the%20UK.%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMackenzie%20Hunt%20(Everton)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EAttended%20DESS%20in%20Dubai%2C%20before%20heading%20to%20the%20UK%20to%20join%20Everton%20full%20time%20as%20a%20teenager.%20He%20was%20on%20the%20bench%20for%20the%20first%20team%20as%20recently%20as%20their%20fixture%20against%20Brighton%20on%20February%2024.%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

The Abu Dhabi Awards explained:

What are the awards? They honour anyone who has made a contribution to life in Abu Dhabi.

Are they open to only Emiratis? The awards are open to anyone, regardless of age or nationality, living anywhere in the world.

When do nominations close? The process concludes on December 31.

How do I nominate someone? Through the website.

When is the ceremony? The awards event will take place early next year.

The specs

Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo

Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm

Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km

On sale: December

Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)

ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS

- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns

- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;

- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces

- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,

- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.