Trump victory stumps American expats in the UAE
Experts say election result could have serious ramifications for Gulf financial markets
Dubai: American expatriates in Dubai have reacted with more shock than awe to Republican Donald Trump’s stunning victory in the US presidential election Wednesday afternoon.
The 70-year-old billionaire who has multi-million dirham business interests in Dubai is now set to become America’s oldest and the 45th president next January after, at 3am Eastern Time, he secured 289 electoral votes - 19 more than the winning line and way above Democrat Hillary Clinton’s 218.
Key states
Trump won the key states of Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio and North Carolina, while Clinton won Nevada and Virginia as the results sent shock waves around the world including here in Dubai. “So it’s gonna be Trump then. Europe wakes up to a shock and so the GCC,” said a Dubai resident on twitter while a Facebook user said: “Trump has it. Gold price surges while stocks are falling,”
“I’m extremely disappointed in the outcome and worry about not just the domestic but global impact of a Trump presidency. I think the American electorate made a mistake and I’m hoping that our worst fears are not confirmed in the upcoming year. My heart is broken,” added another Dubai-based American expat.
Orlando Vidal, the chairman of the Democrats Abroad United UAE, said that all he had to offer was ‘prayer and hope’. “The people have spoken. Sometimes the people get it wrong. But that’s democracy. I say a prayer for my country, a prayer for this region, and a prayer for the world,” Vidal told XPRESS.
Meanwhile financial experts reckoned a Trump presidency could have far-reaching ramifications for the Gulf finance market. Jon Richards, CEO at compareit4me.com, a leading financial comparison site in the region, said the short-term ramifications of the market plunge is that UAE residents will see their dirhams decrease in value against other currencies.
However, in the medium term, he said, it could affect UAE residents’ ability to secure credit. “When markets are jittery, it’s always bad for securing credit – and the shock news of Trump has caused severe market turmoil. Banks here could respond to this news by tightening their credit approvals until they work out how the global economy is going to go once Trump is in office,” he said.
– With inputs from Hiba Hasan, Intern
