A record 41 million dirhams ($11.2 million) was raised through the sale number plates

The appetite for designer number plates in the UAE continued unabated on Saturday, with the numbers 43 and 61 being sold at auction in Dubai for 2.3 million dirhams ($626,300) each.

In the 56th Distinguished Number Plates Auction organised by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) a record 41 million dirhams ($11.2 million) was raised through the sale of two, three, four and five digit number plates.

In total four double-digit plates went under the hammer for 11.1 million dirhams. In addition to 43 and 61, number 78 sold for 2.24 million dirhams while number 89 went for 2.06 million dirhams.

Three-digit number plates included 200, 300, 800 and 900, as well as 110, 220, 330, 440 and 550. The highest selling three-digit plate was number 200, which went for 1.2 million dirhams.

Other number plates on offer included 1000, 2000 and 3000, as well as 30000, 40000, 10001 and 90009.

The UAE has become the global hotspot for number plate auctions thanks to surging oil revenues and economic growth drastically boosting people's disposable income.

Emirati businessman Saeed Abdul Ghaffar Khouri broke all records for the world’s most expensive number plate in February, paying 52.2 million dirhams ($14.5 million) for plate number ‘1’ at an Abu Dhabi auction.

Khouri more than doubled the previous record held by Talal Ali Mohammed Khouri who paid 25.2 million dirhams for plate number ‘5’ in May 2007, also paying 11 million dirhams for the number '7' plate at the same auction.

The UAE now holds the seven most expensive plates in the world. Source

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"1" number plate fetches AED52m, enters Guinness Book

The most sought after car number plate in Abu Dhabi was auctioned today for AED 52.2 million, entering the Guinness Book of Records as the 'most expensive number plate'.

The (1) number plate was sold to Emarati businessman Saeed Abdul Ghafar Khouri who managed to break the record held by his compatriot Talal Khouri for buying the number (5) for AED 25 million.

Proceeds from the sale of number (1) and other single and double digit cra plate numbers will be used to build a hospital for treatment of traffic accidents victims. (WAM)

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Car number plate sale reached AED25.5 million

Another round of car number plate auction which was held here on Wednesday by the Road and Transport Authority (RTA), yielded a total amount of AED25.5 million.

Plate number 98, category "F" yielded the highest amount of AED2.4 million, followed by plate number 75, which was sold for the highest bidder at AED2.14, while plate number 81 went under the hammer at AED2.12 million.

The three-figure special number plates also attracted though competition among the bidders, with plate number 900 going under the hammer for AED930,000, followed by plate number 800 which fetched an amount of AED900,000.

A total of 106 number plates were auctioned, including two, three, four and five-digit special number plates, which fetched a total amount of AED25.5 million for the RTA in the first number plate auction held this year. (WAM)

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Abu Dhabi Vanity Plates sell for Millions

CNN's Wilf Dinnick reports on the high price for vanity license plates in Abu Dhabi.

On February 16, officials from the Guinness Book of World Records will be in Abu Dhabi to witness the auction of exclusive number plates including the most elusive and sought after of all: an Abu Dhabi number 1.

"Number 1 may break our own world record as the most expensive number plate", said Lieutenant Colonel Abdul Rahman M. Ali Al Kamali, director of administration of privatisation and financial investments at the Ministry of Interior.

"We think it may fetch more than number 5 which sold for Dhs25.2 million," he added in an interview with UAE daily Gulf News.

Number plates in the UAE bestow upon their owners their present rank in society - Ruler: number 1; immediate family: single digits; senior government officials: two digits; private company CEOs: three digits; journalists: 5 98724.

Small wonder then that they attract such extraordinary value. The status of being labelled one of the top 200 individuals in the UAE is worth a great deal in UAE society and business.

But can it really be worth Dhs25 million or more? Surely a small proportion of this price can be put down as a business expense. The rest is pure vanity.

A clue to value can be found in other countries. In the UK, the record for the most expensive number plate ever sold was broken this week when an anonymous buyer paid £375,000 (Dhs2.73 million) for the plate ‘F1' (Bernie Ecclestone, perhaps?).

It seems that the British refuse to pay more for a number plate than they could spend on even the most expensive, customised Bentley or Rolls Royce on which to attach it.

There is clearly no such ceiling among the super rich of the UAE.

Maybe it is the fact that UAE number plates use only numbers - creating the rank in society league table effect - while UK plates have to use letters and numbers.

Or maybe it is because cars in the UAE spend so much time in traffic jams, the value of their exterior fixtures is higher because people spend more time looking enviously at them.

Whatever the reason, the regular number plate sales make fascinating viewing. And we look forward to bringing you live coverage of the Abu Dhabi sale on February 16.

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Fifth number plates auction to be held on 12 January

The fifth auction of distinguished number plates will be held on January 12th, Abu Dhabi Police said here today.

"This year's round will see stiff competition as several distinguished numbers will go on auction, including the single digit Number 1, which will be auctioned for the first time", said Lt. Col. Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al Kamali, Director of Privatization and Investment Department at the Abu Dhabi Police.

He said the idea to auction the single digit No 1 was conceived after the massive public response for previous auctions which saw the single digit numbers 5 and 7 respectively fetching more than 20 million dirhams each.

"We have been inundated with enquiries about whether or not we were planning to auction No 1 plate", he said The auction which will be held at the Emirates palace hotel in Abu Dhabi will also see a total of other 100 numbers being auctioned , including ,11111,191,656,117,990,202,9900,6600,3000,1999,40000,38000,11113. (WAM)

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Dubai auction raises three million dollars for AIDS

A classic car belonging to Hollywood star Sharon Stone helped to raise three million dollars for an AIDS charity in an auction during Dubai's Fourth International Film Festival, a statement from the charity said on Tuesday.

The star-studded event late on Monday at a luxury desert resort saw Stone's 1961 Lincoln Continental sell to an unidentified buyer for 400,000 dollars, said the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) for which the actress is global fundraising chairman.
Hollywood actors Michelle Yeoh and Hayden Christensen were also on hand to see another mystery bidder pay 600,000 dollars for an art installation by American artist Robert Rauschenberg.
The annual Film Festival is currently showcasing 141 films from 52 countries. (AFP)

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Car plates auction on Nov 24

The fourth auction of special car plate numbers will be held at 4.00pm on November 24 in the conference hall of the Emirates Palace Hotel.
Lt-Col. Abdulrahaman Mohammad Al Kamali, head of the Privatisation and Financial Investment Department in the Abu Dhabi Police, said about 100 special numbers will be auctioned, including two-digit numbers that will be available for the last time.

The two digit numbers are 24, 56, 74, 80 and the main number 11. The other numbers being auctioned include 400, 109, 456, 550, 5000, 5050, 2008, 77777, 88000, 70707 and 23000. He said the Privatisation and Financial Investment Department will facilitate procedures allowing the buyers to issue a post-dated cheque, payable within five days after the auction. Source

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Christie's auction of jewels and watches in Dubai total AED 60.6 mn

Christie's second auction of Contemporary Jewels and Watches held at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers Hotel in Dubai sold for a total of AED 60.6 million.
The combined total for the two auctions staged in Dubai this week, which included last night's record-breaking sale of International Modern and Contemporary Art is AED 116.5 million. Both sales benefited from online bidding via Christie's LIVE?, which saw registrants from 20 different countries and 65 individual participants.

The sale sold 80% by lot and 86% by value. Buyer breakdown this evening was 34% from the Middle East, of which 25% was represented by the UAE, 28% from Europe including 14% from UK, 17% from Asia, 17% from USA and 8% from Russia and the Ukraine.

According to Francois Curiel, International Head of Jewellery and Auctioneer of the sale, "International participation and vigorous enthusiasm characterized this evening's auction, which resulted in total sales of AED 60.6 million. This is yet another step towards firmly establishing Christie's in Dubai as an important market platform for jewellery in a worldwide context. Once again we are delighted to develop our activities in the Middle East from the important economic and cultural centre that is Dubai." "Tonight's sale saw four lots breaking the $1 million mark. The results achieved reflect the growing awareness of the ease with which collectors can acquire unique and precious jewels and watches, and that buying and selling at auction is an exciting and beneficial way of enhancing their collections, commented David Warren, Head of Jewellery, Christie's Middle East." The multitude of records achieved and increasing participation in these sales on a worldwide level have taken Christie's auctions in this region to the next level.," concluded Michael Jeha, Managing Director, Christie's Middle East.
"This week the young Dubai auction market came of age, and Christie's is proud to be at the centre of this vibrant market. To have broken $50 million in auction sales in our first full year here is a tremendous achievement, concluded Jussi Pylkk'nen, President, Christie's Middle East. Source

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Car number plate auction fetches Dh32.9m

Hundred distinguished car number plates went under the hammer yesterday at the third auction organised by the Abu Dhabi Police General Headquarter.
According to Lt-Col. Abdul Rahman Mohammed Ali Al Kamaly, Director of the Department of Privatisation and Financial Investment of Abu Dhabi Police, the auction raised Dh32.9 million.

Lt-Col. Al Kamaly said the competition among the bidders was tough, specially for number 10, which went to businessman Talal Khouri for Dh4.5 million. Khouri also purchased number 54 for Dh1.75 million, number 82 for Dh1.6 million and number 98 for Dh1.55 million. He also paid Dh330,000 for number 224. The second most expensive number was 65, which fetched Dh2.7 million, Lt-Gen. Al Kamaly said, adding that the lowest price paid was Dh15,000 for number 5570. Source

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Abu Dhabi Police announces Third auction of Distinguished Number Plates

The General Command of Abu Dhabi Police will organize the third auction of Distinguished Number Plates on 27th October at the Emirates Palace Hotel.
Director of Privatisation and Financial Investments Department at the General Command Lt.Col. Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al Kamali said that one hundred number plates will be auctioned during the event. The double digit 10 will be the star attraction of the auction.
Other distinguished numbers to be auctioned include 33, 46, 65, 98, 82 and the three digit numbers like 141, 500, 404 and 311.

Al Kamali said that among the outstanding four-digit numbers to be auctioned in the third event in the series include 1100, 1010, 5500, 7777, 4000 while the five-digit numbers will present 44444, 30000, 99000 and 30003.
Al Kamali said that the reason to select hundred number plates this time is the variety of distinguished numbers in comparison to the first and second auctions. Source

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Christie's to Offer $9 Million of Art in Third Dubai Auction

Christie's International, the world's largest auction house, will offer as much as $9 million of contemporary art, including $7 million of Iranian and Arab works, at its third Dubai sale on Oct. 31.
Works by Egypt's Ahmed Moustapha and Syrian Fateh Moudarres are among the lots, the company said. Moustapha's ``Where the Two Oceans Meet (Variant No. 3)'' (2003) fetched $284,800 at Christie's first Dubai sale in May 2006, breaking the auction record for an Arab work. His ``Qur'anic Polyptych of Nine Panels'' has a top estimate of $350,000 at this month's sale.

Dubai, which hosted the first DIFC Gulf Art Fair in March, has become the center of the Middle East's art market and the regional base for Christie's.
``This third sale will help to firmly establish a strong and vibrant secondary market for modern Arab and Iranian art in the Middle East,'' said Jussi Pylkkanen, Christie's Middle East president.
Christie's raised $8.5 million at its first Dubai auction and $9.4 million at the second sale in February. ``Yesteryear'' by Abdul Kadir al-Raes set a record for a work by an Emirati artist in the February auction, selling for $262,000, or almost five times the presale estimate.
Sotheby's, the second-largest seller of art, has appointed a manager for the Middle East, though it has yet to announce its first auction in the region. Bonhams auction house will hold it first Middle East auction in November.
Mini Sale Stalled
The DIFC event, the region's first international art fair, attracted galleries including London's Albion, New York's Max Lang and Seoul's Gallery Hyundai. Buyers shunned the works on show by U.K. artist Damien Hirst, including ``Spot Mini,'' a car owned by the Saatchi Collection, and concentrated mostly on Indian, Arab and Iranian art at the fair.
Hirst's ``Atorvastatina,'' one of his pharmaceutical paintings named after individual drugs, will be among works by Western artists on sale at Christie's auction this month. The contemporary art sale will be followed by a Nov. 1 auction of jewels and watches expected to fetch as much as $19 million. Source

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Preparations for Licence plate auction gearing up

Preparations for Licence plate auction gearing up Abu Dhabi, June 9, 2007 (WAM): preparations are gearing up for the second auction of the vehicle licence plates with distinctive numbers. The auction slated for June 16th is dedicated to the theme '7'.Director of Privatization and Financial Investments Department at the Directorate of Abu Dhabi Police Lt.Colonel Abdul Rahman Mohammed Ali Al Kamali said that this number has been selected for its importance to the people around the world for various reasons. "The religious importance of this distinctive number is one of them as has been mentioned many times in the holy scripture".Al Kamali pointed out.The AD Police is co-coordinating with various departments to hammer out the final agenda for the event due to take place at the Emirates Palace Hotel. Source

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Special car number plate auction generates Dh 76.2 mn

The first special car number plate auction in Abu Dhabi which conducted at the Emirates Palace Hotel on Saturday drew sales of Dh 76.2 million in the auctioning of 41 numbers.Organized by Abu Dhabi Police and sponsored by Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, the auction of five digits numbers was rated as resounding success as the single digit number 5 hit all world records for its was sold to local businessman Talal Khoury for Dh 25.2 million.The funds raised from the auction will be dedicated to projects for welfare of people with special needs and victims of road accidents.Brigadier Ahmed Al Raisi, Director of Central Operations, Abu Dhabi Police, said the auction had generated unprecedented success as some 700 bidders took part in it.''The high value of sales indicated the desire of bidders to support charity works, especially people with special needs,he added.Al Raisi announced that another auction will be conducted on June 5th where around 90 distinguished numbers, including the number 6 and 10, will come under the hammer.Organizer Emirates Auction Company affirmed that the digit number 5 which fetched Dh 25.2 has smashed all world records, becoming the world's highest value number plate. It explained that a number plate was sold in Britain in 1995 at Dh 2.5 million. Before three months, Dubai saw a purchase of number 15 for Dh 3.5 million.The minimum value of a number plate sold at the auction was Dh 102,000 offered for the number 99599.A number of Arab and foreign nationals were bidding for the special numbers. An Ukrainian citizen paid Dh 550,000 for the number 1001.The highest bidder, Talal Khoury, who also purchased the numbers 55,54 and 55555, said he did that to support charity works. Source

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World's largest available natural pearl to be auctioned

The world's largest available natural pearl is set to be auctioned in this Emirates' capital.
The 575 carat pearl from 12th century Mongolia was formerly owned by Chinese emperors, Persian kings, the grandson of Genghis Khan and Marco Polo. It will be up for bidding in Abu Dhabi's Emirates Palace and on the Internet, where it is estimated to raise up to US$8 million (EUR5.89 million).
The 575 carat pearl from 12th century Mongolia was formerly owned by Chinese emperors (smmyanmar.com)
The value of the 3.1 inch (7.87 centimeters) saltwater pearl known as the "Arco Valley pearl" is based on its size, color, weight, exclusivity, history and previous records of what people have been prepared to pay for similar precious items.
"It's 800 years old and it still takes your breath away," said Khaled al-Sayegh, 35, a jeweler from Abu Dhabi and chairman of the organizing committee for Thursday's event.
Arco Valley is the biggest pearl for sale in the world, but not the largest in size. The 9.45 inch (24 centimeter) Pearl of Allah carries that title. It was found by a diver off the Philippine island of Palawan in 1934 but is not up for sale and is stored in a museum in the Philippines.
The Arco Valley pearl, named after a previous owner from Austria's Arco Valley family dynasty, is white with a touch of blue and mixed with pink and cream colors on its sides. It has been drilled three times: to fit among the jewels of an unknown lady's tiara, to go with a ceremonial mandarin suit and to fit a crown or turban decorated with precious stones belonging to a Persian king.
Though it has since been restored to its original shape, the pearl remains shrouded in mystery.
The pearl's whereabouts and ownership have puzzled experts and collectors for centuries. However, documents in the Arco Valley court prove the pearl was owned by Kublai Khan, the 13th century emperor of China and grandson of Genghis Khan. Experts believe Kublai Khan gave the pearl to Marco Polo as a gift.
Al-Sayegh said he and his partner brought the Arco Valley pearl to Abu Dhabi less than two months ago. He said the pearl was privately owned but did not disclose its latest owner's name and location.
Al-Sayegh said he wants Abu Dhabi to become a pearl trading hub. Pearls are already featured in the Dubai Stock Exchange alongside gold and silver.
"I want Abu Dhabi to become again what it used to be the capital of pearls," al-Sayegh said. He plans to rehabilitate the trade in natural pearls, which until the 1960s was mastered by a woman, Sheika Hassa bint Al Moor, the mother of Dubai's ruler until 1990, the late Sheik Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum.
Al-Sayegh is convinced there are still pearls in the Gulf but not as many as a century ago, when they were the biggest income providers for Arab inhabitants of the Persian Gulf before the discovery of oil in the 1930s.
The quest for black gold on land and later in the sea made diving excursions around the Gulf, where the first pearls were found 7,000 years ago off the shore of today's Kuwait, too time consuming and labor intensive compared with quick earnings from the emerging oil industry. Pollution and the invention of cultivated pearls also contributed to the death of the pearl industry in the Gulf.
But for al-Sayegh, Thursday's auction is not only about cleaning up the waters, reviving a lost tradition and spreading awareness of the pearl's heritage among the post oil generation it's also business.
"And what will make you more money than jewelry?" al-Sayegh said.
At least 400 people from around the Emirates and the Gulf countries as well as from China, India, the U.K., the U.S. and Tahiti are expected to attend the auction. Source

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Number plates to go for auction in Abu Dhabi

A total of 41 number plates bearing single to five digit numbers will be auctioned next month in Abu Dhabi, according to reports in UAE dailies.The single number that will be auctioned is number five, while the double digit numbers include 12, 15, 45, 55, 76, and 88.
"Moreover there are ten plates of three digit numbers and 12 plates each of four and five digit numbers," the dailies quoted Lt Col Mohammed Mayoof Al Kutbi, Director, Vehicle licensing department as saying.
The money received through the auction will go to the rehabilitation of the road accidents victims and also for welfare of the people with special needs. Source

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Dubai Municipality auctions 12 commercial villas and 12 shops

The Dubai Municipality held the first-of-its-kind auction to lease out its villas and shops located on the main Jumeirah Road stretching from Union House to Burj Al Arab. A total of 12 commercial villas and 12 shops with sizes between 3,500 square feet to 5,000 square feet were auctioned to those who participated in the bidding at the free and fair auction, organised at the municipality’s club in Al Jaddaf. The villas can also be used for residential purposes.Salah Al Qaiwani, Head of the Specialised Contracts and Investment Section, Dubai Municipality, said, “The municipality had built villas mixing traditional and modern designs as part of the Jumeirah Road Beautification Project. The road has already been expanded from four to six lanes and it has become a posh street in Dubai housing a large number of restaurants, shops, clinics, shopping centres, beauty salons and clubs.”More than seven shops and eight villas were auctioned out yesterday in the first phase, which drew a big crowd of bidders from Dubai. These premises were given to the persons who made the highest bid. Bidding started at Dh 50,000 for the shops and Dh 25,000 for the villas and the highest bidders were given the premises. This amount according to the municipality is the ‘access’ money and is over and above the rent which is fixed at a certain amount. The rent is between Dh 170 per square foot and Dh 230 per square foot per year, which is cheaper than the current market value on Jumeirah Road according to the municipality.The highest bid registered by the municipality was Dh 850,000 and this came from a bidder who grabbed away a villa marked as RD 8, Villa 1 and the lowest bid was Dh 225,000 for villa RD 15, Villa 1.

The money will be paid to Dubai Municipality in four installments of 25 per cent for each cheque. The construction of villas is part of the municipality's projects of investments and privatisation activities. The villas have been built after demolishing old shops and houses owned by UAE nationals. They are still in the name of UAE nationals, but the Municipality invested in the construction. Both will share the income.

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Husain tops Dubai Christie's sale with $441,600

India's high profile M.F. Husain's Untitled Woman and Horses sold for a record $441,600 as buyers blazed a bidding trail at Christie's second sale of International Modern & Contemporary Art.
The 2002 work sold to an international private collector at the auction Thursday at almost double the estimate of $200,000-250,000, a record for the auction.
Christie's sale, which fetched a total of $9.4 million, was ideally timed given the increase in global demand for works by Indian artists.
Among the 190 lots that were offered, 175 were sold registering a record break of 92 percent.
Following Husain was Ram Kumar, whose large landscape, an Untitled oil on canvas belonging to 1968, went for a handsome $329,600 from an estimate of $300,000-500,000,to a private Indian collector, a first for the artist.
Then there was abstract master Syed Haider Raza, whose Rajput House of 1965-66 went for $307,200 from an estimate of $120,000-180,000, again to an Indian private collector.
A world record was also set for J. Swaminthan's Untitled work at $240,000 from an estimate of $200,000-250,000 to an Indian tradesman.
Syed Haider Raza's moody "Lumière d'Eté" of 1958 sold for $204,000.
Christies were delighted also with the presence of Husain, who was in the room.
Strong interest was expected for works by prominent Gulf artists as well as pieces sourced from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
Continue to ful story from Source (Link).

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Dubai can become top auction industry player

Just a year after holding its first sale in Dubai, London auction house Christie's says the emirate has all the ingredients to become a major player in the multi-billion dollar global auction industry.
Jussi Pylkkanen, president for Christie's Europe and Middle East, says Dubai will compete strongly with powerhouses London and New York, helped by its vibrant jewellery trade, central location to wealthy client bases in India, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Lebanon, and a thriving art culture in the region as a whole.
"In the next five years Hong Kong will rank number three and it just depends on whether Dubai can compete with Paris. The market here is still in its infancy but I think it can and it will rank number four, as long as it keeps encouraging the arts," he said.
"Just as Hong Kong is the natural centre of Asia, Dubai has made itself the hub of the Middle East, both geographically and logistically." Pylkkanen was speaking to Gulf News in the run-up to yesterday's Contemporary Jewels and Watches auction in Emirates Towers hotel, the company's first such sale in Dubai. Top priced items include a single-stone diamond ring by Van Cleef & Arpels valued at Dh2.6-Dh3.3 million. Last year the company felt its way into the Dubai market with the Modern and Contemporary Art auction, which resulted in total sales smashing expectations, eventually reaching $8.3 million after budgets of $3 million.The company recorded global sales of $4.67 billion in 2006, a 36 per cent increase on 2005. Dubai still represents a fraction of the company's total revenue, but Pylkkanen is hoping that sales here will hit $30 million by 2009.

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