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Construction

Real estate, property, construction and infrastructure news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

The Red Sea Project will will host 50 resorts providing up to 8,000 hotel rooms and beach villas

The Red Sea Project: Showcasing natural abundance

One of the most ambitious and environmentally responsible tourism developments in the world is beginning to take shape on the north-west coast of Saudi Arabia. Spread across 28,000 square kilometres and including an archipelago of more than 90 islands, The Red Sea Project will be powered by 100 per cent renewable energy and is committed to […]

Inside NEOM: Saudi’s $500bn smart megacity

Arguably the most ambitious project taking shape in the kingdom is NEOM, a vast region in the northwest of the country that is slowly being transformed into a vision of the future. At the heart of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s drive to diversify the country’s economy, it is being built at an estimated cost […]

Artist's impression of the planned cliff-top football stadium in Qiddiya, Saudi Arabia's entertainment and sports complex south-west of Riyadh

Qiddiya: A sports and arts revolution

Marketed as the kingdom’s capital of entertainment, sports and the arts, Qiddiya is beginning to take shape 45 minutes’ drive south-west of Riyadh. First announced in 2017 as part of Vision 2030, Qiddiya has a dual economic and social purpose – to contribute to the advancement of Saudi Arabia’s economic diversification and to open up […]

Qiddiya is an entertainment megaproject to be established in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia: A kingdom in transformation

Four giga-projects symbolise Saudi’s transformation and economic diversification from oil to technology and tourism – but global problems could delay progress In December last year the neighbourhood of Al-Balad in Jeddah played host to the first edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival. Held only three years after Saudi Arabia allowed cinemas to reopen […]

New-builds rebound as Dubai eyes 1m homes by 2030

Residential real estate project launches in Dubai increased significantly in early 2022, underpinned by renewed positive market sentiment following years of slowdown. After the impact of Covid-19 and dampened market conditions, recent quarters have seen a sharp up-tick in new project launches with Q1 2022 volumes surpassing pre-pandemic levels, according to new data. Prathyusha Gurrapu, […]

Dubai real estate bonanza fuelled by Expo 2020 success

Dubai’s real estate market felt the full impact of Expo 2020’s success in April, with deals soaring to record levels. After the conclusion of Expo 2020 Dubai, 6,983 real estate sales transactions worth AED 18.2 billion ($4.9 billion) were recorded in April – the highest figure for the month since 2009. Secondary market sales transactions, […]

Why Dubai property prices are surging at seven-year highs

Property prices in Dubai are rising at their fastest rate for seven years, according to new data released on Wednesday. Prices in Dubai’s residential market continue to expand, with prime residential prices, encompassing the Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills and Jumeirah Bay Island, surging by 58.9 percent over the last 12 months, said real estate consultancy […]

Non-oil industries saw strong growth but it is slowing. Picture: Creative Commons

Growth in Saudi non-oil private sector still robust in April

Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector continued to see robust growth in April, albeit at a slower pace than in March as fears over inflation began to weigh on demand, a survey showed on Monday. The headline seasonally adjusted S&P Global Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the whole economy fell to 55.7 in April […]

Expo 2020 Dubai

Costs at three-year high in UAE non-oil sector

Energy and material costs are at their highest levels for more than three years in the United Arab Emirates non-oil sector, forcing businesses to increase their prices, according to the latest S&P Global UAE Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released on Monday. “The burden of rising input prices continued to be felt across the UAE non-oil […]

Landscape, Outdoors, Nature

Abu Dhabi sees £2.5bn of property deals in Q1

The volume of real estate transactions in the UAE capital reached AED11.3 billion (£2.5 billion) across 3,304 deals in the first quarter of 2022, official figures reveal. Yas Island, the Abu Dhabi neighbourhood that houses the Formula 1 racing track and several other leisure and entertainment destinations alongside upmarket residential complexes, recorded the largest amount […]

Person, Human, Microphone

Oman’s wealth fund splits assets into two portfolios

The Oman Investment Authority has split its assets into local and foreign portfolios, the state news agency said on Sunday. Abdulsalam al-Murshidi, head of the Omani Investment Authority, said the “Generation Portfolio”, which consists of foreign assets and some local assets in various instruments including public and private markets, in addition to realestate, aims at […]

UAE’s Aldar Properties reports 26.5% Q1 jump

UAE-based developer Aldar Properties on Wednesday reported a 26.5 percent increase in first-quarter profit driven by record quarterly sales and the inclusion of the financial results of Egypt developer SODIC, in which it co-owns a majority share. The company made AED 688 million ($187 million) in the quarter, up from 544 million a year earlier, […]

Turks “bewildered” as rents outpace rampant inflation

Undeterred by industry figures showing rents in Istanbul have doubled inside a year, yoga instructor Ceren Tabak was fully prepared to spend most of her salary on housing costs when she decided last month to look for a home of her own. But she says real estate agents laughed when she quoted them the 6,000 […]

In north Syria, business hub hopes to drive recovery

In an industrial zone in northern Syria’s rebel-held city of Al-Bab, Abu Omaral-Shihabi’s smelter churns out iron bars he says can compete with any produced in Syria and beyond. The industrial zone is an unlikely business hub. It is located on the edge of a city which was once occupied by Islamic State and now […]

Qatar Holding launches tender bid on Italy’s Coima Res

Evergreen, controlled by Qatar Holding, said on Thursday it had launched a voluntary tender and exchange offer on the whole share capital of real estate company Coima Res at 10 euros ($10.50) per share. The offer, which aims at clinching acceptances equal to at least 95% of Coima Res and delisting the Italian company, comes […]

Oman’s sovereign wealth fund splits into two portfolios

The Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has split its assets into local and foreign portfolios. The “Generation Portfolio” consists of foreign assets including real estate aims at achieving the greatest returns for future generations. The “National Development Portfolio” is concerned with managing local assets and more than 160 Omani companies, and aims to contribute to the […]

Turkey’s house price index surges 96% annually

Turkey’s residential property price index (RPPI) leapt an annual 96.4% in February in nominal terms, central bank data showed on Monday, surging against abackground of rising inflation. In the country’s largest city Istanbul, home to around a fifth of Turkey’s population of 85 million, the index climbed 106.3% on the year. The surge follows a […]

Turkish house sales rise 20.6% in March

Turkish house sales rose 20.6% in March on the year to 134,170 houses, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed on Friday. Sales to foreigners rose 31%, the institute said, with Iranian citizens topping the list. Iraqis and Russians were the next biggest buyers of Turkish properties, it added. Wealthy Russians are pouring money into […]

UAE’s Aldar Properties buys beach property in Ras Al Khaimah

Abu Dhabi’s Aldar Properties, through its investment arm, has acquired the “Rixos Bab Al Bahr” beach property in the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah for 770 million dirham ($210 million), it said on Friday. The acquisition will bring its total investment in Ras Al Khaimah to 1.5 billion dirhams, including the earlier acquisition of Al […]