Key growth areas include warehousing, data centres, mixed use residential / commercial complexes and manufacturing plants, with FDI from MENA region and China critical
New industry survey data released by Informa Markets, organiser of Cityscape’s Real Estate Summit, shows 74% of respondents anticipate recovery for the MENA region’s real estate industry within one to two years, with an encouraging 32% expecting green shoots of recovery in the next six to 12 months. The first edition of this bi-annual UAE & Wider MENA Real Estate Report is due to be published on Cityscape-Intelligence.com today.
The surveyed revealed expansion of industrial and manufacturing industries is critical to both real estate sector recovery and non-oil revenue diversification, with warehousing (60%), data centers (56%) and manufacturing plants (55%) viewed as key growth areas across MENA, while residential and healthcare real estate were considered to be the fastest recovering sectors.
The importance of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) was also flagged, with 86% viewing it as the UAE’s primary growth factor. Elsewhere in the survey, GCC and Levant countries (55.92%), and China (51.64%), were identified as key markets for investment and end users.
The comprehensive survey, undertaken by over 500 professionals in a curated database ranging from developers, architects, designers, REITs, private and institutional investors, brokers, government staff, consultants and market analysts, covered a range of sector-critical topics important in commercial, industrial, retail, hospitality and residential real estate.
Chris Speller, Group Director, Cityscape, Informa Markets, said: “The inaugural UAE & MENA Real Estate Report, for the second half of 2020, is an essential data study in what is clearly a challenging time for the market. Conducted by Cityscape Intelligence, the recently launched independent news and market analysis platform, our analysts saw a mix of confidence, pragmatism and caution from respondents across the regional industry infrastructure.”
The UAE & MENA Real Estate Report results will also be discussed at Cityscape’s Real Estate Summit, a one-off edition of Cityscape in November at Dubai World Trade Centre. The Summit is a responsive collaboration between Informa Markets, Dubai Land Department and the holistic real estate industry to deliver a knowledge-sharing destination and B2B meeting place which empowers MENA real estate revival, according to Speller.
Despite the challenging situation created by the global pandemic, an encouraging 42% of real estate professionals peg the MENA region for growth. Similarly, 46% forecast growth across GCC countries.
The full UAE & Wider MENA Real Estate Report can be read at https://www.cityscape-intelligence.com/global-insight/middle-east-and-uae-real-estate-report-2020-released.
Cityscape’s Real Estate Summit will be hosted from November 16-17 at Dubai World Trade Centre with extensive Informa AllSecure safety and hygiene measures in place. For more information, visit: www.cityscapeglobal.com
