Hundreds of Yemenis took to the streets in Aden yesterday, angered at a sharp fall in the value of the rial and the deteriorating economy.
Exchange houses have been valuing the US dollar at markedly higher levels in recent days, making imports more expensive.
The value of the Yemeni rial dropped sharply as a result of the war and the Houthi looting of the central bank before President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi moved it to Aden in 2016.
The Arab Coalition – which includes Saudi Arabia and the UAE – fighting the rebels in Yemen has repeatedly raised the alarm that the Houthis threaten vessels in the Red Sea, a key shipping route for world trade, through their control of the strategic Hodeidah port.
The Bab Al Mandab, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, is the southern entrance to the Red Sea and has become an increasing focus of Houthi attacks as the three-year conflict has caused the rebels’ footprint to shrink under pressure from pro-government forces.
Arab Coalition states have injected deposits into Yemen’s Central Bank to prop up the war-battered economy, which has suffered chronic crises over the past eight years.
In March, the Yemeni rial rose by nearly 10 per cent against the dollar after Saudi Arabia signed an agreement with the Yemen Central Bank for the transfer of $2 billion (Dh7.35bn) to ease economic pressures.
But yesterday’s protests came after a call from activists for civil disobedience against the currency’s recent slide against the dollar and other foreign currencies.
The rial has fallen sharply against the dollar over the past three months. In July, it was valued at 496 to 1 US dollar but last Tuesday it traded at 570 and then fell to between 600 and 610 yesterday, according to traders at the Al Amri exchange centre in Aden.
“I am here to tell the region and the world that we are starving, I am here to express myself independently, away from politics. I want bread, water and electricity and the price of the local currency to get back to its level in 2014,” Mohammed Khan, a young protester from Aden, told The National. The protestors blocked roads and burnt tyres, also making their presence felt outside government offices where they chanted slogans.
Women and children as well as state employees also took part in the protests in Aden.
“My salary used to be worth about $400 but today it’s about $200 because the Yemeni rial became nothing against the dollar,” an employee from the University of Aden told The National.
With the country at war there have also been problems in paying state employees’ salaries.
UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths will mediate between the Yemeni government and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels at talks in Geneva later this week. It is the biggest effort at peace since 2016.
The use of further UN intermediaries, rather than face-to-face talks, follows the same pattern as the UN’s peace talks in Syria.
It is designed to ensure that progress, however limited, can be made.
The Yemen discussions will primarily focus on the Houthi-held port city of Hodeidah, the disarming of all non-government forces and a possible exchange of prisoners.
Houthi rebels have asked for political recognition and to retain control over some areas of the country.
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Read more:
Arab coalition expresses regret for 'mistakes' in Yemen strike
US seizes major weapons cache from boat in Gulf of Aden
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Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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.”
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
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