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Indian rupee hits 11-month low, Dh1 fetches Rs17.22

HSBC predicts Rupee to rebound strongly in 2015

ATEST: The Indian rupee fell below the 63-mark, declining 51 paise early Tuesday, hitting a new 11-month low of 63.45 against the US dollar on the Interbank Foreign Exchange.

The decline is result of heavy dollar demand from importers amid falling crude oil prices.

Earlier story:

The Indian rupee fell to a new 10-month low on Monday, with a dirham now fetching Rs17.22.

The fall in the currency has been attributed to an unexpected contraction in industrial output in the country, raising concerns of economic growth coupled with significant losses in emerging market currencies such as Indonesian rupiah.

The partially convertible rupee closed at 62.94/95 per dollar on Monday, after reaching 62.95, its lowest level since January 28 compared with 62.29/30 close on December 12.

The rupee dropped 1.03 per cent, its highest single-day decline since its 1.05 per cent fall on August 6.
Despite the decline, HSBC, a global bank, has predicted that the rupee to be the strongest of the Asian currencies in 2015.

“Lower oil prices should mean a persistent improvement in the current account and inflation. The Reserve Bank of India is committed to lowering inflation expectations and now has the ability to curb excessive rupee weakness,” HSBC’s head of Asian forex research Paul Mackel said in a report.

The bank expects the rupee to hover between 62.50 and 63.00 to the dollar next year, which keeps it pretty much where it now, at 62.60.

The bank picked the rupee as the ’safest’ bet in the new year amid soft growth and rising disinflationary pressures, expecting the Rupee to be more resilient, as better terms of trade help bolster external balances via soft export volumes and commodity prices; and domestic growth can be supported by structural reforms and the ability to add leverage.

“This combination of global and local factors favours the rupee the most followed by the Indonesian rupiah and the Philippines peso,” the bank said.

Earlier Moody’s, an international ratings agency, has said that the Indian economy is expected to pick up pace in 2015 and grow in the range of 5 to 6 per cent, helped by strong domestic demand.

The ratings agency said the country has benefited from a strong domestic demand base and diversified export markets that give protection from the effects of a slowing Chinese economy and soft growth in the euro zone and Japan.

Sharjah balcony rule: 6,500 homes fined

Dh3.25m collected in fines for violating rule

Picture for illustrative purpose only. (File)

Sharjah Municipality revealed 6,500 balcony-rule violations were issued in the second half of the year, totalling the fines collected to Dh3.25million.

Residents in the emirate are prohibited from hanging their laundry in balconies and violators are slammed with Dh500 fine.

According to Faisal Al Mulla, Director of the special unit at the municipality that conducts campaigns and inspections, hanging clothes in the balcony harms the beauty and cleanliness of the city.

Talking to ‘Emirates24|7’, he explained that residents in the emirate are disallowed by law from using their balconies for extra storage. These will incur penalties, he added.

Apart from the clothing line, even dish antennas are not allowed to be installed on balconies. “If we find dish antennas, we will charge violators Dh500, and the material will be confiscated.”

Al Mulla added residents are allowed to put up chairs and tables on the balcony, or potted plants or shrubs. “These should be suitable for the space. Residents must not crowd the area.”

Residents can even put up screens to block sunlight, but the space must not be used as an additional room or storage space.

The official informed that pamphlets and flyers explaining this rule and the implication of violations are being handed out to residents in the emirate.

70-year-old Emirati has 24 children from 16 marriages

Has 60 grandkids

Mohammed Saeed intends marrying again to increase family members to 100 (Al Khaleej)

A 70-year-old Emirati in Al Ain has 24 children, with the oldest aged 47 years and the youngest child just two months.

Mohammed Saeed is awaiting the birth of his next baby in seven months, reports ‘Al Khaleej’ newspaper.

Saeed, who has more than 60 grandchildren, has had 16 marriages. Most of them are divorced and he currently has two wives, who live together.

He first married at age 12 and continued until 2005. He has had Arabs and foreigners as wives.

Saeed says, he married several times because he always desired to have many children.

Recalling his early days, Saeed says he has four sons from his first wife – an Emirati. Then he married a British woman, who was living in the UAE at that time. He divorced the Brit and had no children with her.

Saeed said he was particular about providing for his ex-wives and ensured all are well settled with adequate housing for them and their children.  He is also strict about his children’s education.

Friday is family day for Saeed, when he meets his entire family.

He said that he intends marrying again to increase family members to 100.

Dubai Airports issues travel advisory ahead of holiday rush

Advises passengers to arrive early at airport, check baggage allowance…

Single unit of baggage weighing over 32kgs will not be accepted at check-in. (File)

Dubai Airports has issued an advisory for passengers to ease travel through Dubai International as part of preparations for the seasonal rush anticipated to hit a peak later this week and over the weekend.

Smart travel tips:

-         Aim to arrive early to the airport. It is best to leave a minimum three hours for check-in and passport control. Take into consideration daily rush hours and available routes in calculating your commuting time to the airport.

-         Leave extra time for your journey to the airport as roads will be very busy. Please say your goodbyes at home.

-         Check with the airline in advance for information on your baggage allowance. Irrespective of the allowance, a single unit of baggage weighing more than 32kgs will not be accepted at check-in. You should expect to be charged for baggage in excess of the limit set by your respective airline.

-         It is always simpler to pack liquids, aerosols and gels (LAGs) in your check-in baggage. However, if you have to carry LAGs in your hand luggage, make sure they are in a clear re-sealable plastic bag. Each item should not be more than 100ml and total content of all items should not be more than one litre.

-         Remember to put anything metal – watch, jewellery, mobile phone, coins, belt – into your hand luggage well before you arrive at the X-Ray machine. This will save time at security screening.

-         Be sure to check which airport/terminal you are departing from before leaving home.

-         Beat the queues by checking-in online or using the self-service check-in kiosks in the departures hall. Customers with baggage can make use of the quick-baggage drop counters, while those carrying only hand luggage can proceed directly to Immigration.

-         Using the e-Gate card helps avoid queuing at passport control, both while arriving and on departure. An eGate Card can be obtained from the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigner Affairs (immigration) for a fee. GDRFA have eGate counters in the departure areas of all terminals.