Dubai: The Big 5, a regional building construction show, takes place in Dubai this week amid the emirate’s real estate bounce back, five years after the sector registered a decline in contruction activities.
The Dubai Government has announced and resumed a series of multibillion projects including the Dh25 billion Mall of the World project and the Dh32 billion expansion of Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central (DWC).
Ventures Middle East, a UAE consulting company, released a report earlier this year that said the country’s gross domestic product is expected to grow by 4 per cent to $404 billion this year, driven by construction sector growth and the oil and gas sector, according to a statement from The Big 5 organisers.
In Dubai, the emirates real estate sector has been backed by investor confidence with developer Emaar Properties’ September listing of its mall business in a $1.6 billion initial public offering with plans to list other segments of the business. While fellow developer Meraas Holding is reportedly also looking at a listing and to spin off its theme-park business.
Across the six Gulf Cooperation Council nations, which includes the UAE, governments will spend more than $90 billion on education-related construction projects by the end of the year, according to Ventures Middle East reporter commissioned by The Big 5.
The Big 5, in its 35th edition, runs from November 17 to 20 at Dubai World Trade Centre with more than 2,700 exhibitors from 60 countries, according to organisers.
