News on Dubai

Michelin-starred British chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsay's restaurants in Britain suffered a 90-percent drop in profits as the recession began to bite, it was revealed Thursday. Ramsay's latest company accounts show that the precarious situation forced the chef and his father-in-law and business partner Chris Hutcheson to pump five million pounds (5.9 million euros, 8.2 million dollars) into the business. The abrasive chef has blamed its problems on over-ambitious expansion and the closure of key London restaurants such as the Savoy Grill, which was shut ...

Low-cost carrier Flydubai said on Wednesday it struck a 320-million-dollar aircraft financing deal with GE Capital Aviation Services that would bolster its fleet. Under the agreement, GE will finance the airline's purchase or leasing of four planes from Boeing in the second half of this year, to add to the two aircraft which the carrier already has, the firm said in a statement. "This deal will fulfill our financing needs to receive the four aircraft from Boeing by the end of 2009," Chief Executive Ghaith al-Ghaith said in the ...

Dubai real estate giant Emaar Properties said on Sunday that the debt of the entity to be created through its merger with three other property developers will not exceed 3.64 billion dollars, seven percent of combined assets. The listed company, which is mostly controlled by the government, and the government-owned Dubai Holding had said on Friday that they were in advanced talks to merge Emaar and three Dubai Holding property units -- Dubai Properties, Sama Dubai and Tatweer. "The combined entity will have an indebtness of AED 13.4 billion ...

Sweet melodies are soaring above the usual banging and crashing at building sites around Dubai as labourers prepare their vocal chords for their own version of "Pop Idol". The singing contest for the thousands of people living in workers' camps in the Gulf emirate will stage its first auditions on July 3, local newspaper The National reported on Sunday. Workers from five companies and living in more than 50 camps will take part in auditions for the the third edition of Western Union Camp Ka Champ, whose title means "Champ ...