Last Night in Abu Dhabi

[MEIST - Dubai -Abu Dhabi 1, 2, 3, 4 - Jordan]

Today's visits were fairly amazing. The first was to the Canadian Embassy where we discussed the current environment in the UAE, what makes it attractive for foreign investment (and labour) as well as what the Canadian government is doing to try to improve relations in the area to bolster trade.

Next was the Central Bank of the UAE, that is to say the key decision makers of the monetary policy regarding the UAE's monetary supply. We discussed the nature of the Dirham (DHS) and how it is currently pegged to the USD at 3.67 and how the peg provides stability to oil exports and the exports of goods. Our group asked questions relating to potential re-valuation and re-pegging of the currency as well as the trade implications of flutuations in the US dollar versus China's currency.

Finally, we made a trip to Mubadala, one of the premier government owned companies (described as a PE firm with a soul). This was certainly an interesting visit as we had four different speakers discuss the differences between how business is done here and in other regions. They were sure to highlight and reinforce that they aimed to be best in class, soliciting co-investment with partner firms and that financial returns was a priority and yet they focused on social and systematic improvements to the diversity of Abu Dhabi's industries.