NEWS

Virtuoso®, the world's leading luxury travel network, is pleased to welcome the Armani Hotel Dubai into Virtuoso Preview, a program showcasing the most anticipated hotels and resorts that have just opened their doors or will be opening within the year. As the first hotel in the Middle East to participate in this prestigious program, the Armani Hotel Dubai joins an elite group of world-class properties that have turned to Virtuoso to increase visibility and add a competitive edge to their sales and marketing initiatives.

The 2010 outlook excludes the impact of a claim relating to Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower in Dubai, the statement said. The company had made a net loss 103.6 million dirhams in the first half of the year due to the Burj Khalifa claim, it said in August. The firm said it is positioned for about 20 percent growth in 2011 and 2012. It is also expanding into new territories like Yemen, Angola and Abu Dhabi.

The fourth installment of Tom Cruise starrer 'Mission Impossible 4' will be shot at the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai. The scenes will be shot around Dubai and some of the action will take place in and on the Burj Khalifa tower, which stands at 828m (2,717ft) tall, reports metro.co.uk. 'To be shooting here, it's a city I've always wanted to shoot in,' said Cruise.

With only about 75 of the 900 apartments in the tower occupied, asking rents in the tower have fallen almost 50 percent, Better Homes sales adviser Laura Adams told Gulf News. Studio apartments are now available for about $1,800 a month, down from $3,000, while two-bedroom units once priced at $7,100 a month now rent for about $4,300.

The story of Emirates whose success is intertwined with the rapid development of Dubai could be nothing but fascinating. Against a backdrop of regional unrest and volatile global economies, progress has been maintained at a rapid pace in every year of Emirates’ and Dnata’s existence. The following is a timeline of the airline’s history.

In terms of acquisitions, Sweid said these might be "further down the line now that we're consolidating all the business that we have". In terms of its work on the Burj Khalifa, Sweid said the full value of the contract had been paid in full and on time by Emaar, although the firm was pursuing a claim against Samsung, the primary contractor on the tower, as work took longer than expected.

Austrian enamel jewellery specialist Frey Wille has opened two shop-in-shops in key airports as it seeks to further expand its presence in the duty free sector during 2010. The new outlets have started trading at Cairo Airport Terminal 3 and at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. A boutique in Madrid will start trading by the end of 2009, and there are plans for a Cannes shop next year, revealed Elmona.

Nominations for the prestigious Arabian Business Achievement Awards have opened, with the winners to be announced at a glittering ceremony on November 30th at Dubai’s Armani Hotel. This year’s awards will span 15 categories, including technology, media, retail and the sought after titles of Businessman and Businesswoman of the Year.

Rents for apartments in the world's tallest tower are dropping further, a quick search in property offers by Dubai's agents shows. According to Better Homes sales adviser Laura Adams, about 825 of 900 apartments in the Burj Khalifa are still empty, some nine months after the tower's launch.

Since the first machine was installed in May, in the lobby of Dubai's Burj Khalifa hotel, 20 gold-to-go machines have been installed across Europe. Next month the first machines will open in the US.