Russian pullback from Dubai offset by shoppers from elsewhere

Dubai

RUSSIAN shoppers caught in a currency crunch are staying away from the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) this year, but visitors from elsewhere look set to make up the numbers at the annual retail bonanza.

Every January, Dubai is decked out in lights, banners and roadside ornaments heralding the event. Luxury boutiques staffed with Russian and Cantonese speakers promise generous discounts, and raffles offer cars as prizes.

Dubai, one of seven federal states in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has far smaller oil reserves than the capital Abu Dhabi, …