11.25.2007

Dubai Airshow

Most people have probably seen this already but I loved this photo from the Dubai Airshow.

Dollars and Dihrams

The dihram peg to a declining dollar raises issues for Dubai, particularly the laborers who see already paltry wages diminishing further in value. A recent OPEC meeting in Saudi Arabia raised the prospect of a gradual lifting of the dollar peg (to follow Kuwait's example) and a diversification of growing reserves from dollars to Euros. While the big picture debate centers around OPEC and whether the cartel will shift to Euros, there are still big ramifications on the ground of the weak dollar, and many link recent worker protests in Dubai to this issue.