> Did Dubai ever have much oil wealth on its own? Dubai is also an overbuilt mess right now, a city can only support so many 7 star hotels (whose guests are mostly rich from oil anyways coming to Dubai to play).
Dubai certainly had a lot less oil to start with, which is why it expanded so aggressively. Definitely overshot the mark there, but the issue isn't catastrophic (they do have a strong tourism base).
> Is Abu Dhabi oil owned by the citizens, or by the royal family like in Saudi? Later down the line, that will be quite an important distinction.
It's owned by the national oil company which manages it for the government. Part of the revenue is diverted into expansion, part into the sovereign wealth fund, and a lot into subsidies and benefits for citizens. Generally speaking the UAE is managed much more equitably than Saudi, with the benefits of oil money used to aid all citizens (for example, universal healthcare).
Dubai certainly had a lot less oil to start with, which is why it expanded so aggressively. Definitely overshot the mark there, but the issue isn't catastrophic (they do have a strong tourism base).
> Is Abu Dhabi oil owned by the citizens, or by the royal family like in Saudi? Later down the line, that will be quite an important distinction.
It's owned by the national oil company which manages it for the government. Part of the revenue is diverted into expansion, part into the sovereign wealth fund, and a lot into subsidies and benefits for citizens. Generally speaking the UAE is managed much more equitably than Saudi, with the benefits of oil money used to aid all citizens (for example, universal healthcare).