The grounding of the Dubai butterfly

With luck, and some global co-ordination, Dubai will be able to recover from the fallout of the past few weeks

Dubai –Goodbye! Built on Quicksand! Desert Storm in a Teacup! The headlines and jokes about the requested debt “standstill” of the flagship companies Dubai World and Nakheel could already rival the Essex Girl Joke Book. Those whose sum of knowledge of the place is defined by pictures of Nakheel’s Palm Islands and the Mile High Burj, plus spicy anecdotes from package holidays, may be tempted to have a jolly good sneer, and top up their nice, safe UK income fund. However, prudent advisers should revisit the butterfly theory much beloved these days of climate change warriors: the moveme...