A grain of sand slipped into the clockwork of the Dubai Inc machine. But this speck of sand is not so small, and amounts to 59 billion dollars! Last November 25, the announcement of the rescaling of the debts of the conglomerate Dubai World and its real estate subsidiary Nakheel was like a bomb. Indeed, even a Gulf emirate can have cash flow problems… since the beginning of the millennium, since Dubai focused its development strategy on services and tourism in order to compensate for its low oil revenues, observers grew accustomed to discovering increasingly insane projects imagined by the Al Malktoum family. But behind admiring gazes, were also hidden sometimes mocking interrogations of those who predicted the fall of a small State that wanted to grow too big, too fast.Like the city overall, hotel results, which have been stratospheric for several years, have also regained some measure. “I can confirm that despite the drop in the RevPAR, Jumeirah continues to be very profitable,” emphasizes Robert Kunkler. And, despite current problems, several observers are counting on a future that will perhaps be less glitzy but nonetheless brilliant for the destination, like Jean-Gabriel Pérès, CEO of Mövenpick (see interview). “The emirate has become one of the most popular and most soughtafter/ popular/recherchées destinations with exceptional equipment, very upscale hotels and a year-round calendar of sports events and entertainment,” depicts Robert Kunkler. At the same time, the Business segment is sustained by several jewels for commerce such as the cargo port Djebel Ali and its airport, which is one of the biggest in the world, and a market that is growing, at least until recent events. These solid foundations should enable it to surmount difficulties, especially since local tourism players - with the DTCM, the Emirates company and hoteliers such as Jumeirah...