Macro Strategy and Economic Updates

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Latest data shows that the UAE real estate market continued to perform strongly in 3Q2025 driven mainly by tight supply across residential, hospitality, industrial, and commercial segments, according to consultancy research from JLL and CBRE. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. The UAE property market is wrapping up 2025 on a solid footing, with Dubai continuing to lead momentum. According to DLD data, the emirate recorded AED46.26bn in transactions across 18,232 deals in October, with off-plan activity making up 71.4% of sales. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. In the UAE, demand remained strong through 3Q2025 as the economy continued to diversify and expand outside the oil sector. According to Zawya citing CBRE’s 3Q2025 UAE Real Estate Market Review, average sales prices in Dubai rose by around 20% YoY Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. The GCC’s property landscape continues to move at full pace, with the 3Q2025 bringing notable developments across major markets. In Dubai, momentum continues to build across the residential sector. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse.  Abu Dhabi’s property market recorded a notable increase in 3Q2025, with transaction volumes and values both up 86% YoY, according to Goldman Sachs’ UAE Real Estate Monitor. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse.  The GCC and wider region’s real estate markets continue to show strong activity, with the UAE at the forefront. According to the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre, transactions in the first half of 2025 reached some USD14.7bn, with residential deals accounting for roughly USD6.8bn. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Dubai’s property market remained steady in August 2025. Despite the seasonal slowdown, total sales transactions reached AED50.7bn, up 7% YoY. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. In Dubai, Eden Realty set a new benchmark with the USD71mn off-market sale of a 50,000 sqft villa on Emirates Hills’ ‘Golden Mile.’ The record deal underscores both the continued strength of Dubai’s top-tier luxury homes and highlighting the exclusive, invitation-only nature of these high-value transactions. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Dubai’s property market continues to accelerate with no sign of slowing down. According to Zawya, leading developers such as Emaar, Samana, Ellington, Azizi, and Arada are now bringing construction operations inhouse; carrying out building works themselves rather than outsourcing external contractors. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. All eyes this week were on CBRE’s Q2 real estate snapshots of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and for good reason. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. In Dubai, the residential market is approaching a pivotal moment. While supply forecasts suggest up to 186,747 units could be delivered between 2025 and 2029, actual handovers are likely to fall short given historical trends. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. UAE markets began the week on stronger ground. As of June 20 2025, signs of easing tensions between Israel and Iran helped lift investor confidence, giving both Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock indices a noticeable boost. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. The UAE’s real estate market remains a regional trendsetter, but recent geopolitical turbulence has exposed its short-term sensitivities. On June 19, escalating tensions between Israel and Iran triggered a dip in investor sentiment. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Abu Dhabi‘s real estate market is gaining solid traction. According to JLL, luxury villa prices are forecast to rise by 10–12%, while more affordable apartments are expected to climb by 6–8%. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Kicking off in the UAE, MAG Group, a leading Emirati developer, has joined forces with MultiBank Group and blockchain firm Mavryk in a record-setting 3 billion dollar deal to tokenize luxury real estate assets in Dubai. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Despite a slight cooling in March, Dubai’s off-plan property sector continues to set the pace. While sales saw a minor dip, these forward-looking deals still made up a significant share of total activity. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Across the UAE, the real estate sector continues to gain traction. In February 2025, Dubai’s property sales reached AED51.1bn, marking a 55% increase in value compared to February 2024, according to Property Finder. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Dubai’s property market has been on a thrilling ride, with 2024 delivering a 20% surge in residential sales prices and a 19% jump in rents, according to latest sector reports. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Dubai continues to make waves in the global real estate arena, poised to dominate the prime residential market this year. With capital values, of prime residential properties per square foot, projected to climb up to 9.9% — Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. All eyes are on the numbers this week as Dubai’s real estate sector continues to reinforce its status as a global investment hub, underpinned by rising transparency, investor confidence, and strong returns. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) real estate pulse. Dubai Land Department is making strategic waves, enabling property owners on Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Jaddaf to shift to freehold ownership—essentially converting long-term leases into liquid assets. Please read on…

Welcome to our inaugural issue of the Friday (GCC&E) Real Estate Pulse. The UAE’s real estate sector exhibited remarkable performance in 2024, recording approximately 331,300 transactions worth AED893bn during the course of the year, encompassing activities in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, and Ajman. Please read on…

The fed fund futures market is currently pricing in 100bps of rate cuts by the end of this year, a degree of implied easing that, in the context of current macroeconomic metrics, we believe to be overdone. Moreover, a further four 25bp rate reductions are then priced in by the end of 2025. In this latest update to our Global Rates Outlook, we set out not only our thoughts on USD and GCC rates going forward, but also probe into the outlooks for the European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan.

In the context of the recent extension of OPEC+ oil production cuts to the end of this year – and the clear net negative implication that we believe this could have on GCC oil producers’ petrochemical revenues and sovereign balance sheets – we are today revisiting our forecasts for United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) and Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) real GDP growth for 2023 and 2024.

Our latest Macro Strategy publication in which we set out our Global Rates outlooks for the second half of 2023, and beyond.

With inflation pressures running hot in Egypt (as well as more broadly around the globe), and after the bank left rates unchanged at the last meeting (Feb 2, 2023), we now expect the Central Bank of Egypt to resume its walk through the tightening process this week with the delivery of a new rate hike. The question though is how big a rate increase it might deliver on this occasion. We believe a 300bp hike could be appropriate, and with more to come after that.

Events surrounding the global financial sector have created something of a hiatus in the implied FOMC monetary policy outlook, which, as financial conditions continue to tighten, underscores that the global markets’ rates narrative is now at beginning of the end of the tightening cycle. At the very least, recent events have triggered the need for a meaningful reappraisal of the global rates outlook. In short, as we head toward the next Federal Reserve FOMC decision (due 22.00 on March 22), we believe that the Fed now has four policy options in front of it, but only one sensible one.

In this report FAB’s Market Insights & Strategy team provide a snapshot of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) from a macro-economic perspective, our current outlook for the oil market, and a summary of FAB’s MENA FX and rates capabilities.

Our latest Macro Strategy publication in which we update Global Rates and GCC Macro outlooks for 2022.

In this report FAB’s Market Insights & Strategy team provide a simple overview of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) from a macro and markets perspective. The report covers a macroeconomic snapshot of the region, our outlook on the GCC economy and oil market, and a summary of the GCC FX and rates market.

The positive macroeconomic diversification story of the United Arab Emirates moved to a new chapter this week as the government announced on September 5 its latest strategy to stimulate the domestic economy. Entitled ‘Projects of the 50’ to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the country in December this year, the government will embark on a series of stimulatory investments and also aim to ease residency rules for expats, all of which is designed to build the country’s status as a global hub for business and finance.

Back in Q4 2020 the global macro outlook for 2021 was generally founded on cautious optimism. Rates were anchored, the fiscal policy sluice gates were wide open, particularly so in the wake of President Biden’s election and the Covid-19 vaccination drive was well underway. Since then, financial markets have largely continued to price in a brightening horizon, notwithstanding a few road bumps and obstacles to risk asset sentiment along the way. There is still reason for optimism today, but perhaps not to the extent that the world was holding its breath for back in late 2020.

The buffeting headwinds and tailwinds of the current turbulent global macroeconomic landscape continue to fuel reassessment of the global interest rate outlook. In this respect, please find our latest analysis and outlook for global rates, entitled ‘Bearing All’.

Our latest macro strategy analysis in which we offer a preview of today’s U.K. Budget that will be delivered by Chancellor Sunak to the House of Commons.

Our latest macroeconomic analysis in which we discuss some of the key takeaways from this week’s (virtual) Davos 2021 symposium.

Our latest macroeconomic analysis in which we discuss some of the key macroeconomic risks facing global markets in 2021.