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Oasis Capital in UK housing JV
Bahrain-based Oasis Capital Bank has formed a five-year joint venture with UK-based Unite Group Plc, the listed developer and manager of student accommodation, to develop three student accommodation properties in London with an estimated completion value of £194m, Property Week has reported. Oasis has bought a 75% stake in the joint venture, investing £39m, with Unite holding the remaining 25%. Unite's three properties under development, amounting to 1,119 beds and representing its entire 2010 pipeline, will be immediately sold to the joint venture for £88.2m.
Barwa to build $9bn Cairo project
The Egyptian unit of Qatar's Barwa Real Estate has said it will begin building a $9bn Cairo project in the first quarter of 2010, Reuters has reported. The mixed-use project is spread over more than 8.4 square kilometres near Egypt's capital and will be finished in 10 to 12 years, the developer has said. The firm is studying all options for financing the investment including Islamic bonds and loans.
Talaat Moustafa Q2 profit down 29%
Talaat Moustafa, Egypt's largest real estate developer by market value, has reported a 29% decline in second-quarter net profit to EGP321m ($58m) as building costs escalated, Reuters has reported. Revenue was EGP1.638bn, down from EGP1.675bn in the same period last year. The firm's real estate and construction costs had jumped 17.5% to EGP2.2bn in the first half of 2009, compared to EGP1.8bn in the first half of 2008. Second-quarter costs were EGP1.2bn, the company said.
Nass posts H1 profit increase
Bahrain-based construction company, Nass Corporation has posted a net profit of BD7.776 m ($20.6m) for the first half of this year, up from BD5.416m for the same period last year. The firm achieved a gross turnover of BD57.69m for the half year, an increase of 16.67% in the half yearly turnover and increase of 43.57% in the half yearly net profit over the figures for the same period last year.
Jonh Buck to build Al Hilal tower
Al Hilal Bank, a UAE-government owned Islamic bank, has announced the appointment of real estate services company John Buck International, to coordinate and manage the development of a 24-storey commercial tower for Al Hilal on Sowwah Island, Abu Dhabi. According to agreement, John Buck International will steer all aspects of the project through the design and construction processes. The first phase of the design process is to commence with immediate effect and the project is scheduled for completion in 2014.
Omnyiat cuts 2008 unit costs by 10%
Dubai-based Omniyat Properties has announced a 10% reduction in the price of its units for projects sold during the peak of 2008, Emirates Business has reported. 'As construction costs now have come down, we have passed on the benefits to our customers,' said Mehdi Amjad, Chairman of Omniyat. The developer has begun the handover of residential units in its Dhs800m The Square project in Dubai.
UAE investors 'most active' in Lebanon real estate
According to the latest Inter-Arab Investment Guarantee Corporation annual report, UAE real estate investors are the most active in Lebanon, where they have collectively invested $1.115bn, representing 41.9% of total Arab investments in the country in 2008. Real estate sales value and construction permits in Lebanon saw average growth rates of 17.6% and 12.6%, respectively, over the past five years. Sales transactions have now almost stabilised in the first five months of 2009, while construction permits have posted a 4.3% yearly increase, the report has said.
Burj Al Alam piling work underway
Dubai-based developer Fortune Group has said that the piling work on the Dhs4bn Burj Al Alam, to be the world's tallest commercial tower, is progressing steadily at the construction site in Dubai's Business Bay. 'The shoring work has been completed and already over 146 of the 613 piles required for the foundation of the pioneering project have been laid. The piling work should be completed by January 2010 and we are optimistic about meeting the 2012 deadline for completing the project,' Syed Muhammad Ali, Fortune Group's CEO has said. Middle East Foundations Group is undertaking the work.
Palm Hills reports 56% profit decline
Egypt's Palm Hills Development has reported a 56% decline in its first-half profit, Bloomberg has reported. The developer's net income had dropped to EGP157.4m ($28.4m) from EGP361.7m in the same period a year earlier the group said in a statement.
Kuwait property market still weak, says KIB
Kuwait International Bank (KIB) has said in a report that weak performance in the country's real estate market continued in the second quarter of 2009, with sales numbers rising, but values falling. There were 1,185 real estate transactions in Q2, 6% more than in Q1. But the value of those transactions fell almost 8% to KD430.7m in Q2 compared to Q1. Total deals in Q2 2009 were 42.5% lower than in the same period in 2008. In Q2 2008, 1,514 transactions were reported at a total of KD749.1m, with KD494,800 on average per transactions, the report said.
Al Habtoor Leighton expects profit despite Dubai challenge
Dubai-based Al Habtoor Leighton Group has said that getting paid in Dubai remains "challenging" as the financial crisis curtails lending, Bloomberg has reported. "We continue to work with our partners, clients, subcontractors and suppliers to manage the situation, but I think at the moment liquidity generally is very challenging," the firm's managing director David Savage said. The company values its order book at Dhs26bn. It expects demand in Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to remain strong, with Savage saying that although Dubai is a challenge, in other regions 'it's business as usual'. He added that profit in the company is expected to rise this year, but not at previous levels.
Qatar house rents fall 35%
Slackening demand and oversupply of residential units have sent house rents in Qatar down between 30 and 35%, The Penisula has cited real estate agents. Property market operators have expressed their forecasts, saying they do not expect any major improvements after the long summer break. Agents said the trend shows there are hardly any enquiries from newcomers, and are mostly from families who want to shift to cheaper accommodation.
KFH to fund land and housing deals
Kuwait Finance House (KFH) has said it will immediately put in effect an irrevocable judicial decision allowing it to bankroll land and housing deals in line with Islamic financing formulas, KUNA has reported. Procedures were being taken by the bank to have earlier deals registered at the Property Registration Department, KFH has said.
Drake bids for Dhs700m of contracts
Drake & Scull International is bidding for contracts worth some Dhs700m ($190.6m) in the Gulf and hopes to win its first contract in Libya in the next three to four weeks. DSI, which specialises in mechanical, engineering and plumbing businesses and listed on the Dubai Financial Market in March, has a project backlog worth Dhs2.9bn. Most of the projects it is bidding for are outside the UAE.
Phase one of the Wave, Muscat completed
Sector One of the Wave real estate development in Muscat, Oman has been completed. The complex of 133 villas and 130 townhouses took 10 million man-hours to build, the company said, all of which have been sold. Work on the Wave began in April 2007.
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