Construction Value of Saudi real estate deals fall 11% in 2023 By Andrew Hammond January 26, 2024, 5:44 AM Pexels/Gustavo Fring The number of real estate deals fell in Saudi Arabia in 2023 but residential property accounted for almost 59 percent of sales Transaction value down to SAR193 bn April down 47 percent on 2022 Construction minerals sector grows The value of Saudi real estate transactions fell 11 percent during 2023 to about SAR193.45 billion ($51.59 billion), but the number of construction material licenses awarded in the kingdom rose 39 percent in the same period. Figures released by the Ministry of Justice this week showed transactions fell from SAR216.7 billion to SAR193.45 billion. The figures are still far lower than the high of SAR439.8 billion in 2014, when oil prices hit $115 per barrel. April was the lowest month, when transactions were down 47 percent on the previous year at SAR8.6 billion. Residential accounted for 58.6 percent of sales, followed by commercial at 38 percent, with Riyadh accounting for 44 percent of sales and Jeddah 18 percent. Saudis to build carbon-negative concrete factory Saudi will top Gulf business travel chart, says Wego boss Seven plans entertainment sites in remote parts of Saudi Arabia Construction sector growth At the same time, the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources issued 183 licences in the construction materials sector during 2023, up 39 percent from the 132 issued in 2022, the National Industrial Development Center said. Investment in the sector rose 1 percent to SAR336 billion in 2023, and the number of factories in the sector rose to 2,065, from 1,955 in 2022, while the number of Saudis working in the sector rose 17 percent to 40,850. Saudi Arabia is engaged in a massive economic development programme centred on giga-projects valued so far at $1.25 trillion, leading one real estate consultancy to describe the country as the world’s biggest ever construction site. The World Bank said last week that it expects Saudi GDP to grow by 4.1 percent in 2024 and 4.2 percent in 2025, rebounding from a 0.5 percent contraction in 2023 caused by Opec+ output cuts.
Aviation Riyadh Air delays launch after Boeing setbacks Riyadh Air has been forced to push back its launch date to the third quarter of 2025 after delays to deliveries from Boeing. The new Saudi airline had been scheduled to begin flying early this year. It is a blow to Saudi Arabia’s tourism ambitions to attract 150 million visits a year. Riyadh Air was founded […] 22 hours ago
Tech KKR signs a $5bn Gulf data centre deal in Dubai KKR, the American investment giant, and the data centre platform Gulf Data Hub (GDH), based in Dubai, have signed a strategic partnership to invest $5 billion in data centres serving the Gulf. A joint press release on Friday said that funds “affiliated with KKR” will also acquire a stake in GDH, although it did not […] 24 hours ago
Manufacturing China’s Geely opens Mena’s first car assembly plant in Egypt China’s Geely Auto has opened its first car assembly plant in the Middle East and North Africa near the Egyptian capital to produce 10,000 vehicles per year for the domestic market and up to 30,000 for export. Cairo-based Auto Mobility company (Geely Egypt), said it has invested around $100 million in the new car assembly […] 1 day ago
Logistics Emirates increases capacity to meet rising cargo demand Dubai national carrier Emirates Airline has taken delivery of two additional aircraft to increase capacity and meet growing demand for its cargo service. The company has signed multi-year leasing deals for two Boeing 747 freighters, which have raised Emirates’ cargo capacity by 15 percent, the airline said in a statement. Emirates SkyCargo transported almost 1.2 […] 1 day ago
