Page 89 - Aamir Rehman - Dubai & Co Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States-McGraw-Hill (2007)

Here to Stay: GCC Market Attractiveness and Risks 73

expected to grow sixfold between 2005 and 2010, to almost 2 million
19
individuals. While this segment has long been the target of private
banking and other financial services, it is now also the target of a
growing array of “elite” products and services across a wide range
of sectors. Ultraluxury hotels, like the $1.1 billion Emirates Palace
Hotel in Abu Dhabi, have suites costing thousands of dollars each
night largely to appeal to intra-GCC elite travelers.

Ongoing Regulatory Reform
To many outsiders, GCC markets appear opaque and shrouded in
mystery. These perceptions are likely the result of a dose of exoticism
fueled by the entertainment and news media. GCC markets do have
a long way to go before they are fully liberalized, but even today they
are quite open by emerging-market standards. GCC leaders have
committed (at least in principle) to continuing the economic reform
process, recognizing that opening up their markets is a critical factor in
their economies’ long-term success. This deregulation process—which
includes encouraging international trade, privatizing state-owned
enterprises, expanding property rights for foreigners, among other
reforms—is the crucial third element in the Opportunity Formula.
The Heritage Foundation, a US think tank, publishes an “Index
of Economic Freedom” each year, scoring countries around the
world and assigning a “Freedom Percentage.” The results of its 2007
Index, some of which are listed in Table 3.1, may be surprising. 20

TABLE 3.1
Freedom % for Selected Countries around the World

Country Freedom %
United States 82.0
Bahrain 68.4
Oman 63.9
Kuwait 63.7
GCC average 21 62.7
Brazil 60.9
Qatar 60.7

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