Can the World's Exhibition give Dubai more than temporary economic growth?
With the end of Expo 2020, some participants in the local housing market prefer to refrain from buying real estate and take a wait-and-see approach.
The reason is that real estate prices are expected to start falling in April when the last visitors leave the halls of the world exhibition.
Expo 2020 ends on March 31.
Observing the Emirate’s rapid economic growth since October 2021, investors expect a price correction in the market. However, this position misses several important market factors that the event was intended to create.
Gulf News tried to highlight several points that indicate that Dubai is ready to move on after Expo 2020.
The first point is that the exhibition was not intended to temporarily revitalize the market. The main role of the event is to become a platform for concluding contracts between local businesses and the state, foreign corporations, and investors, as well as for establishing long-term cooperation in key sectors of the economy.
Expo 2020 attracted new and returned old companies to the market, strengthened the tourism sector, created conditions for the influx of new labor — qualified specialists from industry, technology and financial sectors, science, and healthcare.
The exhibition also had an impact on the construction sector.
Expo 2020 has led to a rise in local property prices due to increased demand. However, in recent months, the groundwork has been laid to boost this demand.
By October 2022, the exhibition venue will be transformed into a new urban area, District 2020. The area is expected to become Dubai's new key business hub. On average, at the first stages, the district should attract about 145,000 people: tourists, residents, and workers.
Over the past year, by February 2022, the Dubai housing market is experiencing a shortage of supply. Demand is quickly growing. Although District 2020 will offer potential buyers new options, the lack of real estate affects prices, so they continue to rise.
The most important consequence of Expo 2020 is the security of Dubai and the UAE for foreigners. First of all, we are talking about security during the pandemic.
At the end of September 2021, over 20 million doses of the vaccine were sold in the United Arab Emirates. In February 2022, 95.1% of the population was vaccinated with two doses. The spread of booster doses is gaining momentum.
With a population of 9.89 million people, 8.84 million people are expat foreigners. The vaccine is available not only to citizens and residents but also to tourists.
Expo 2020 has boosted the economy and housing market in Dubai over the past 4 months. However, the exhibition has laid the foundation for development after the event.
International contracts, the attraction of international corporations, private investors and employees, effective marketing of the country are important for the UAE as one of the safest places on the planet during the pandemic.
All this and the development of exhibition infrastructure in the urban areas make it possible to expect an increase in demand and property prices n Dubai in the future.
