UAE condemns attempt on Trump’s life

The UAE has condemned the assassination attempt on former US president Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania.

The gunfire injured Trump, killed one spectator and critically injured two others at a campaign event on Saturday evening.

The UAE has expressed sympathy over the incident and condemned the shooting.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the UAE’s solidarity with presidential candidate Trump, his family, the government, people of the US and offered wishes for a full and speedy recovery.

The ministry on Sunday reiterated the UAE’s categorical condemnation of criminal and extremist acts and voiced a permanent rejection of all forms of violence.

The UAE ministry also offered condolences to the family of the victim of the shooting.

Qatar joined in denouncing the assassination attempt with the Foreign Ministry emphasising the need for dialogue and use of peaceful means.

Qatar said it was against violence, criminal acts including political assassinations regardless of the motive and reason.

A statement from Qatar’s Foreign Ministry urged avoidance of political violence and hatred to overcome division.

Bahrain also issued a statement to denounce the attack. According to the Bahrain News Agency the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed that the assassination was a crime that contradicted democratic principles, and wished the former president good health.

The ministry also expressed sympathy for US citizens and wished the injured people a quick recovery.

Trump had been speaking to the crowd when shots rang out. With blood trickling down his face, he was shielded by Secret Service agents and removed from the stage.

Trump said the bullet pierced his upper right ear. He said he “heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place,” on a post on Truth Social, his social media site.

The Secret Service said it had killed the gunmen who was positioned in an elevated site outside the rally venue.

Middle East ties

Trump has numerous business interests in the Gulf, Middle East and Asia region with golf, real estate projects and investments, many were announced before he was elected president in 2017.

During his presidency, his son-in-law and his leading adviser Jared Kushner’s role was critical in negotiating the Abraham Accords leading to the UAE and Bahrain signing historic agreements with Israel followed by Morocco and Sudan.

It was during Trump’s term from 2017 to 2021 that he moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, breaking with decades of Washington policy.

His attempt at a Middle East peace plan was also short-lived with Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital rejected by Palestinian leaders.

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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.”