Dubai is facing a sharp recession, London-based newspaper al-Quds al-Araby reported

[dixiegrrrrl]

Residents of the emirate told the paper its city’s famous shopping malls had turned into ghost towns, with hotels and bars closing their doors as customers fail to walk through them.

The famous gold souk was almost empty, the residents said, in scenes unseen for 40 years.
Nose dive

Earlier this year, the Kuwait Financial Centre released a report saying that sales of real estate projects under construction had plummeted by 46 percent in the first quarter of 2018.

and
British airline Virgin Atlantic announced on Thursday it will end flights between London and Dubai, citing “external factors”, as the emirate appears to suffer an economic downturn.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/virgin-ends-london-dubai-flights-due-external-factors-1731808136

This is a "sub-prime" type of warning. Dubai gets its wealth from people who spend and buy there, essentially.
So why are the vedda vedda rich now not spending...it's not a one off.

[underthematrix]

1. This makes me so happy

[Bok_Tukalo]

2. Dubai is Magrathea

<OPE>

[SWBTATTReg]

3. What happened? Just curious and surprised...

I remember the PBS special they did on Dubai and all of its growth and construction...what a surprise...

[dixiegrrrrl]

10. All that glitz was because of loans.

Dubai figured ti could develop itself as rich person's paradise. "If you build it they will come" thinking.

When you owe a lot of money, and Dubai did, and your pay off is dependent on other people spending theirs for a long time, the gamble may not pay off.
For whatever reason, the income tanked before the loans are paid off. And apparently has been tanking for while.
Could be the result of someone wanting it to, or maybe the money set has moved onto another playground, you know how fickle they can be.
Could be a result of the murmurings that has been going on globally for some time now.

[Demovictory9]

4. interesting. I heard rumors last year that Dubai was tanking. I wonder how that fake island is

doing...that one that looks like the planet earth

[A HERETIC I AM]

6. "The World" is over 100 islands, not just one.

And Google Earth shots from early this year show some development. For a long time only one or two had homes built, one notably owned by Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher, given to him as a gift by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World_(archipelago)

https://goo.gl/maps/NEvPcUPrZa72

Most are still barren, however.

[Demovictory9]

8. I watched a video on the building of the island. High tech solutions had to be developed to prevent

the ocean from sweeping them away. constant addition of sand and such. I wondered about the long term
life of the islands. the HOA payment must be huge.

[JI7]

5. Do they have anything other than expensive hotels and bars ?

How about things like historical sites, culture, etc ?

[bobbieinok]

7. Wasn't an Ivy college building a massive campus there? Dubai was supposed

to become a world financial center with educational and cultural attractions.

Hasn't lots of Western $$$ been poured into there?

Is it a monarchy or what?

[BigmanPigman]

9. Maybe Lindsay Lohan's residing there wasn't

a selling point for tourists. I learned about Dubai from watching Anthony Bourdain's episode from there and it was really interesting. You have to be a natural born citizen going back a few generations to be a considered a real citizen there. Their "leader" is in charge and has built the whole area up in the past 15 years.

Here is Tony Boirdain No Reservations Dubai (2010).
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5wyqrq