Despite the real estate market’s subdued performance, one of the largest brokerage firms in the US opened up a new office in the emirate, which is expected to boost investor confidence and reinvigorate the sector. In May 2019 Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices (BHHS) announced its arrival in the Middle East market with the opening of a new office in The Greens. The UAE has become its fourth…
The long-anticipated Expo 2020 will run from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021. Located close to Dubai World Central airport in Dubai South, the site of the event is expected to cover a total of 438 ha. Expo 2020 will be the first of its kind in the MENA region, and under the theme of “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”, it aims to act as a convening point for innovative technologies…
Although Dubai’s real estate sector has experienced some downward pressure and declining returns for developers and contractors since the fall in oil prices that began in late 2014, the investment prospects associated with Expo 2020 and a raft of regulatory reforms aimed at attracting foreign investors have helped to stabilise the market, and many industry players are optimistic that the…
From 206 BCE to 220 CE, China’s Han dynasty fostered a booming trade industry for silk, a precious commodity in high demand among the elites of the Mediterranean. The Silk Road was the name given to the network of trade routes connecting the East and West at the time. Later, spices and other precious cargo would be traded using the system, fostering not only economic, but also cultural links…
Dubai's well diversified economic base has continued to underpin growth in the emirate. Despite slowing global growth and rising tensions placing pressure on international shipping, Dubai’s maritime sector has continued to strengthen, and in 2019 the emirate moved up in the ranking of the world’s top-10 maritime capitals, securing the ninth spot. The emirate is also rapidly emerging as a leade
Dubai’s economy went through several years of expansive growth in the years following the turn of the millennium, with much of this driven by an active and rapidly expanding construction sector. Indeed, such was the pace and scale of activities at the time that a popular claim had it that the emirate was home to around 20% of the world’s cranes at the height of the boom in 2006. Even though…
Even as a years-long softening in the rental and sales prices of Dubai’s real estate continued in 2018, industry experts agree that any further market corrections from the highs of 2014 that have not yet played out will not extend beyond 2020. Moreover, amid the decline in average property prices, the sector has grown considerably both in absolute terms and relative to the wider economy.…
In 2008, for the first time in history, more than half of humanity was living in urban areas. Perhaps the most remarkable observation about this trend is the speed at which it has happened: as recently as 1900 urban areas accounted for 13% of the global population. Towns and cities are seen as the crucibles of opportunity for many rural dwellers. The UN estimates that by 2030 urban areas will…
As the global economy becomes increasingly digitised, the Dubai Land Department (DLD) and its legal arm, the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA), have aimed to stay ahead of the curve. In May 2018 they announced that they had begun developing the Real Estate Self Transaction (REST) platform, an online portal that will enable all aspects of real estate business to be carried out online, beginning…
The performance of Dubai’s industrial real estate was mixed in 2017. Even as achieved rents for grade-B stock fell significantly in 2017 and the first quarter of 2018, achieved rents of grade-A stock in Jebel Ali Free Zone and Dubai Investments Park grew by 16.7% and 6.7%, respectively, according to the latest issue of Knight Frank’s “UAE Industry and Logistics Market Review”. The analysis…
