Video length: 03:53 VIDEO Construction Dubai tests modular building to cut demand down to size Dubai Municipality has awarded Linq Modular a licence to start work on a pilot for a seven-storey modular building. Linq will design and build the pilot modules at its 300,000-sq-ft factory in Dubai Industrial City – which has the capacity to produce 1,900 units per year. The units could be used for a residential or a […] August 1, 2023
Construction Aldar Education expands into Bahrain and Dubai Aldar Properties has increased investment in its education business, with over AED350 million ($95 million) added to the initial AED1 billion commitment announced last year, it said on Monday. A filing to the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange notes that the company is expanding into Dubai and Bahrain, as well as adding a new acquisition in […] July 31, 2023
Infrastructure Israel plans to link $27bn rail project to Saudi Arabia Israel will build a 100 billion shekel ($27 billion) rail expansion that will connect its outlying areas to metropolitan Tel Aviv and, in the future, could provide overland links to Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The announcement followed a trip by top US officials to Saudi Arabia last week to advance a possible […] July 31, 2023
Exclusive Real Estate Dubai businessman ready to take on The World A Dubai businessman is in talks to try and launch a project on The World, as the emirate’s record-breaking real estate market revives interest in the manmade island development. The World was launched in 2003 by state-owned master developer Nakheel. Made up of 300 small manmade islands in the shape of the map of the […] July 31, 2023
Infrastructure Carbon targets deter Middle East power project developers Developers are becoming increasingly wary of bidding for long-term infrastructure deals in the Middle East because the terms go beyond their own carbon neutral targets. According to industry sources they are particularly struggling to be able to work on projects involving thermal power plants without carbon capture and storage (CCS) because the terms can stretch […] July 27, 2023
Real Estate Dubai has 392 real estate projects under development Nine real estate projects worth AED4.06 billion ($1.11 billion) were completed in the first half of 2023, according to the Dubai Land Department (DLD). The emirate has 392 real estate projects currently under development, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported, citing DLD data. The first half of 2023 saw the registration of 42,583 real […] July 27, 2023
Real Estate Russians bucking trend in Dubai with bigger, pricier homes Russian buyers are bucking the trend in Dubai real estate and buying bigger, more expensive houses as they make the emirate their new permanent home. Residential property prices in the emirate climbed at their fastest rate in almost a decade in the first half of this year. Villas topped previous records set in 2014. Property […] July 27, 2023
Analysis Real Estate Residential deals slump in Saudi as mortgage costs rise Residential real estate deals in Saudi Arabia fell by nearly a third during the first half of 2023 as higher mortgage costs eroded purchasing power. New analysis from Knight Frank showed there were about 70,000 transactions during the first six months of the year, down from 103,000 in the same period last year, representing a […] July 26, 2023
Real Estate Off-plan sales in Abu Dhabi surged 111% in Q2 to $490m The value of off-plan property deals in Abu Dhabi more than doubled to AED 3.8 billion ($490 million) in Q2 2023 from AED 1.8 billion in Q2 2022. In a Q2 market overview report based on data from Quanta, the consultancy JLL said most of the deals were in the AED2 million to AED3 million […] July 26, 2023
Construction Aldar unveils $136m plan to revamp UAE shopping malls Aldar Properties announced an AED500 million ($136 million) investment plan on Tuesday to redevelop two of its key retail portfolio assets in the UAE – Al Jimi Mall in Al Ain and Al Hamra Mall in Ras Al Khaimah. The investment takes Aldar’s committed spend on redeveloping key retail assets to AED1 billion, the Abu […] July 25, 2023
Transport UK keeps Turkey’s high speed railway on track with $865m backing The UK government’s export credit agency has underwritten $865 million of financing to support construction of a 286km high-speed electric railway in southern Turkey. With financing provided by UK Export Finance (UKEF), Turkey’s Rönesans Holding will finish construction of the Mersin-Adana-Gaziantep High Speed Railway on behalf of the Turkish Ministry of Transport. The deal is […] July 25, 2023
Real Estate Norwegians return to Dubai commercial property sector Norwegian investors were the second-largest group active in Dubai’s commercial real estate in the second quarter of the year, marking a dramatic return after being largely absent since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The number of sales transactions in Dubai’s commercial sector reached 3,080 in the second quarter of 2023, a year-on-year increase of 22 percent, […] July 25, 2023
Real Estate Turkey island in Dubai set for $21m auction A manmade island on The World development off the coast of Dubai has been put up for auction, with the price tag starting at AED78 million ($21.24 million). Part of an archipelago built in the shape of the map of the world, the island – named Turkey – has had “many” potential buyers visit the 47,645 […] July 25, 2023
EXCLUSIVE Tourism Aseer province is Saudi’s next untapped tourism hotspot The mountainous region of Aseer is Saudi Arabia’s next target for tourism investment, according to one of the kingdom’s most prominent industry leaders. Developing Aseer and encouraging repeat visits will be key to helping the kingdom meet its tourism goals, said Salman Gassim, government advisor and chief executive of Riyadh-headquartered Swiss Hospitality Company. Gassim, whose […] July 24, 2023
Real Estate Foreign investment up 363% in Abu Dhabi real estate Abu Dhabi real estate encountered a record 363 percent rise in purchases by foreign buyers in the first half of 2023, according to new data. Foreign purchasers spent AED834.6 million ($227.2 million), Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) reported. The DMT figures showed that the most popular location among overseas investors was Saadiyat […] July 20, 2023
Analysis Real Estate Dubai real estate still playing catch-up after pandemic Dubai’s real estate market is experiencing soaring demand but the supply shortfall from the Covid pandemic is still having an impact and is likely to remain for at least another two years, experts have said. Residential property prices in the emirate climbed at their fastest rate in almost a decade in the first half of […] July 19, 2023
Tourism Abu Dhabi checks into $900m deal for Japan hotels A subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority is part of a consortium that has completed a $900 million deal to acquire a portfolio of hotels in Japan. The Adia subsidiary has joined Singapore’s private equity real estate firm SC Capital Partners and Goldman Sachs Asset Management in acquiring 27 hotels from Japanese developer Daiwa House […] July 19, 2023
Real Estate Turkish home sales drop by 44% after earthquakes Macroeconomic trends, a quirk of the calendar and the market fallout from February’s earthquakes have led to a 44 percent drop in Turkish home sales, experts have told AGBI. A total of 83,636 homes were sold in Turkey in June, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute, compared to 150,509 during the same month last year. […] July 19, 2023
Real Estate Emaar given ratings upgrade after first-quarter sales surge Dubai’s largest real estate developer Emaar Properties has received credit rating upgrades from Fitch Ratings, Moody’s and S&P Global, as residential property prices in the emirate continue to rise. Fitch Ratings upgraded its long-term issuer default rating to ‘BBB’ from ‘BBB-‘, Moody’s announced an upgrade to Baa2 from Baa3 and S&P Global raised Emaar to […] July 18, 2023
Real Estate Saudi’s new mortgage scheme to encourage homebuyers Saudi Arabia has launched a new mortgage guarantee services firm in an effort to increase home ownership among nationals. The Saudi Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) has launched Dhamanat, a wholly owned subsidiary, with SAR18 billion ($4.7 billion) in capital to provide insurance, alongside mortgages. Mortgage issuance fell by more than one third year-on-year in […] July 14, 2023
Infrastructure Egypt opens 17 infra projects for private sector investment Egypt has approved 17 infrastructure projects under its public-private partnerships (PPP) scheme, according to finance minister Mohamed Maait. The projects include three wastewater and industrial waste plants in Sadat, New Beni Suef and New Mansoura, and nine transformer plants and electrical grid projects in the New Administrative Capital, 6 October City and New Aswan City. […] July 14, 2023
Real Estate Sharjah real estate sales surge from Dubai spillover The loosening of buying rules and a steady spillover of tenants from Dubai has boosted real estate sales in its neighbouring emirate Sharjah. Arada, a master developer in the emirate, has reported a 186 percent increase in sales during the first half of this year. It sold a total of 1,616 homes worth a total […] July 13, 2023
