The problem with auto shows is that car makers first tease us with the cars they should build and then show us the cars they will build. Thus, at the latest Los Angeles Auto Show, Cadillac proudly presented its latest in a long line of large luxury saloons geared to its traditional, (though now not nearly as) geriatric audience. Beautifully rendered inside, the XTS' exterior is just a tad somnolent, its silhouette a half-hearted attempt at the four-door coupé motif that's sweeping the auto industry.
It might have left one wondering if Cadillac's angular and once radical Art & Science styling has run its course were it not for the concept car display not 15 metres from the XTS podium. There you would find the Ciel, a massive boat of a car - a roadster no less - that looks like a cross between a CTS and one of those gorgeous, curvy wooden lake runners that made boating in the Gatsby era seem so glamorous. Of course, it won't be produced; too expensive, too radical, say the beancounters. We'd have to build a completely new platform, complain the engineers. There's no consumer demand for such a car, say the marketing mavens.
It all sounds like pathetic weaselling to me. The same marketing mavens are constantly reminding us that Cadillac was once "The Standard of the World" and that their biggest desire is to see it return to its deserved former glory. Yet, if the company truly wants to return to whence it came, it's going to need a flagship to sit atop its line-up like royalty upon a throne, something the XTS or even a "V" version of the CTS can't even begin to pull off.
Infiniti's contribution to the LA show seems equally timid. As phenomenally luxurious as its new JX seven-passenger luxury crossover is inside, the exterior is fairly conventional save a for a couple of "crescent" shaped curves in the rear roofline, and a front grille derived, say the company's cravat-wearing designers, from the Essence sports coupé initially launched at the 2009 Geneva motor show. The problem is that the Essence is, by some margin, the most gorgeous shape ever penned by anyone even remotely associated with Nissan. It must be frustrating for Alfonso Albaisa, Nissan's vice-president of design, to be constantly fielding questions on when the Essence is going to be put into production, rather than answering queries regarding the new JX, which is being produced.
Even Land Rover got in on the timorousness. Unveiling the DC100 ("D" is for Defender, "C" is for concept and "100 for its wheelbase), the company's global brand director, John Edwards, explained the DC100's raison d'être as testing North America's desire for a return of the Defender, which hasn't been sold in the US since 1997.
"We are here in Los Angeles to showcase our DC100 and DC100 Sport concepts and to start to actively explore the possibility of bringing the future Defender to North America," says Edwards, which is really corporate speak for, shades of Sally Field, "do you like us? Do you really like us?"
In fact, the DC100 is so unanimously attractive to both sexes that Land Rover should put it into production as soon as possible as a replacement for the uninspired LR2. The fairer sex will love its soft curves, especially in its baby blue LA auto show livery, while we of the XY chromosome will revel in its off-road bona fides. So, a note to Mr Edwards - no need for vacillation; the DC100 is ready for prime time as is.
At least a few car makers get the message. Jaguar, for instance, lists the breathtakingly beautiful CX-16 as a "production-ready concept" which, again, is corporate speak for "the drivetrain may change, but the basic shape shall remain". Oh, a cynic might postulate that Jaguar, its sales remaining basement-bound despite a new XJ, is less risk adverse because sales are so lowly. But the reason matters not: the CX-16 will get produced and that is cause enough for celebration.
Even Subaru gets the message that any shape worth penning is also worth producing, revealing the BRZ STI is its final stage "concept" form. The first front-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car from Subaru in more than a generation looks to rekindle the excitement around the currently staid brand. Dubbed the BRZ Concept STI, the two-door sports coupé is all but production ready. About the only thing typically Subaru is the company's tradition boxer engine, displacing 2.0L in this guise. It's mounted extremely low - Subaru is claiming a Ferrari-like centre of gravity - and the company is benchmarking Porsche Cayman for performance. They are leaving themselves an out, however, should all this radical divergence be too much for its traditional clientele: there is room for all-wheel-drive.
England v South Africa schedule:
- First Test: At Lord's, England won by 219 runs
- Second Test: July 14-18, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 2pm
- Third Test: The Oval, London, July 27-31, 2pm
- Fourth Test: Old Trafford, Manchester, August 4-8
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
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Florida: The critical Sunshine State
Though mostly conservative, Florida is usually always “close” in presidential elections. In most elections, the candidate that wins the Sunshine State almost always wins the election, as evidenced in 2016 when Trump took Florida, a state which has not had a democratic governor since 1991.
Joe Biden’s campaign has spent $100 million there to turn things around, understandable given the state’s crucial 29 electoral votes.
In 2016, Mr Trump’s democratic rival Hillary Clinton paid frequent visits to Florida though analysts concluded that she failed to appeal towards middle-class voters, whom Barack Obama won over in the previous election.
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
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'Joker'
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix
Rating: Five out of five stars
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Managing the separation process
- Choose your nursery carefully in the first place
- Relax – and hopefully your child will follow suit
- Inform the staff in advance of your child’s likes and dislikes.
- If you need some extra time to talk to the teachers, make an appointment a few days in advance, rather than attempting to chat on your child’s first day
- The longer you stay, the more upset your child will become. As difficult as it is, walk away. Say a proper goodbye and reassure your child that you will be back
- Be patient. Your child might love it one day and hate it the next
- Stick at it. Don’t give up after the first day or week. It takes time for children to settle into a new routine.And, finally, don’t feel guilty.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Volunteers offer workers a lifeline
Community volunteers have swung into action delivering food packages and toiletries to the men.
When provisions are distributed, the men line up in long queues for packets of rice, flour, sugar, salt, pulses, milk, biscuits, shaving kits, soap and telecom cards.
Volunteers from St Mary’s Catholic Church said some workers came to the church to pray for their families and ask for assistance.
Boxes packed with essential food items were distributed to workers in the Dubai Investments Park and Ras Al Khaimah camps last week. Workers at the Sonapur camp asked for Dh1,600 towards their gas bill.
“Especially in this year of tolerance we consider ourselves privileged to be able to lend a helping hand to our needy brothers in the Actco camp," Father Lennie Connully, parish priest of St Mary’s.
Workers spoke of their helplessness, seeing children’s marriages cancelled because of lack of money going home. Others told of their misery of being unable to return home when a parent died.
“More than daily food, they are worried about not sending money home for their family,” said Kusum Dutta, a volunteer who works with the Indian consulate.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
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THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
OPENING FIXTURES
Saturday September 12
Crystal Palace v Southampton
Fulham v Arsenal
Liverpool v Leeds United
Tottenham v Everton
West Brom v Leicester
West Ham v Newcastle
Monday September 14
Brighton v Chelsea
Sheffield United v Wolves
To be rescheduled
Burnley v Manchester United
Manchester City v Aston Villa