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Editor's Viewpoint: Height of folly?
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
The Burj Dubai skyscraper is the world's tallest building, but today many people are wondering if it is built on sand.
Its opening comes just a week after Dubai World, one of the chief investment arms of this Middle Eastern city state, asked for time to make payments on its $60bn debts, shaking global confidence in Dubai's economy.
It is a state built on enterprise and speculation, with none of the oil riches of its neighbours to sustain the economy should investments go wrong.
While Burj Dubai may be an iconic symbol of a state which emerged very rapidly out of the desert, it could yet prove more mirage than substance.
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