Orlando stumped for answers

ORLANDO // The Orlando Magic, who had all the answers through the first two rounds of the playoffs, are suddenly looking for clues against the Boston Celtics. The Celtics turned up the defensive pressure, put the squeeze on Dwight Howard and took Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals 92-88 on Sunday night.

The teams meet again in Game 2 tonight in Orlando, and will then take a three day-day break before resuming the series on Saturday in Boston. Displaying the same intensity that earned them the NBA title in 2008, the Celtics frustrated the Magic early and survived some nervous moments late inflict the first defeat in the post-season on the Magic. Orlando trailed for the entire game and were stymied as the Celtics sent a barrage of big men at Howard, delivering hard fouls and forcing him into hard shots.

"When I get into a wrestling match with them I think it plays to their advantage," said Howard, who was held to 13 points on 3-for-10 shooting while committing seven turnovers. "Now I have to go back and regroup and look at film on better ways to get into a position to score." Ray Allen scored a game-high 25 points and made two free throws with six seconds left to preserve the win after Boston's 20-point lead in the second half was cut to just two in the final seconds.

The Celtics said even though they struggled at times during the regular season, they had no doubt about their ability to progress in the play-offs. They reached the conference finals by knocking off the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in six games. "As a veteran team everyone was waiting for the play-offs and when we got here we hit the ground running," Allen said. "They came out ready to play," said Vince Carter, who led Orlando with 23 points. "They jumped on us early, offensively and defensively. We fought like heck to get back in the game.

"Unfortunately, when you're down that many points with about nine minutes to go, and with them defending like they did, it's going to be tough." Stan van Gundy, the Magic coach, said his team was not rusty after having six days off following its sweep of Atlanta. Orlando outscored the Hawks by a combined 101 points, the largest margin of victory for a four-game sweep in NBA history. "We got outplayed today. That's it," Van Gundy said. "We have to find better ways offensively to attack their defence.

"We have to quit turning the ball over and we have to make some defensive adjustments." * Agencies

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The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
not be younger than 25 years old
not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially

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.”

Going grey? A stylist's advice

If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”