DUBAI // The annual Eid al Fitr spending spree failed to materialise in certain retail sectors yesterday as store owners reported plenty of shoppers but very little purchasing.
The luxury goods sector appears to have been the hardest hit; some jewellers said sales were down by 70 per cent from last Eid.
The Eid break is typically among the busiest shopping periods of the year as families flock to malls to buy gifts, especially jewellery, children's toys and clothes. Several malls last year said they attracted 30 per cent more customers than on standard shopping days.
Shoppers turned out in large numbers yesterday at Deira City Centre, home to numerous jewellery stores, but most were reluctant to part with their cash.
"These are the worst times I've seen in this business, ever," said Azeez Rahman, manager of the Prima Gold store. "People just don't want to spend, and instead they are buying other things, like clothes."
Last year, people were willing to splurge on diamonds, Mr Rahman said.
Mohammed Shameer, manager of Golden Ring, said shoppers last year spent an average of Dh6,000 to Dh10,000 (US$1,630 to $2,720) on jewellery gifts for Eid.
"There has definitely been a 60 to 70 per cent drop because of the recession," Mr Shameer said. "On top of that, we are selling luxuries like diamonds, which are not seen as a necessity, so people don't spend on that now.
"For Eid, people are focusing on gifts such as clothes, sweets and electronics because [the vendors] have slashed their prices."
Another reason for the reduced spending on jewellery is the decline in resale value of many pieces, store owners said.
As the malls filled with people yesterday, many vendors stood at their doorways, watching families pass their empty stores, pausing occasionally to glance at window displays.
Jewellery is no longer at the top of shoppers' gift lists, said Dashrath Soni, the acting manager of the G.B. store in Deira City Centre.
That leaves store workers to stand idly, waiting for the time to pass.
"Last year we did not have time to take a break or eat anything because we were so busy, but this year all we do is just sit and relax," he said.
Several clothing stores and shops that sell traditional crafts also voiced concern after the sales they had been relying on never happened.
"We have seen more than a 50 per cent drop in the business since last Eid," said Khalil, a sales assistant for Regional Trading, a store in Mall of the Emirates that specialises in pashminas and handcrafted materials.
The shop's pashminas range from as cheap as Dh50 all the way to Dh75,000. Last year, shoppers would spend around Dh13,000, Khalil said. This year, they were mostly sticking to cheaper items or not buying at all.
"They would rather look and window shop than actually spend," he said.
"In Ramadan we were hoping for Eid to pick up the business, but now it is Eid and we did not get what we wanted for the business. This is a worry for us."
nsamaha@thenational.ae
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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.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
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