Retail International® - The Annual Report 2010 - MENA

This latest and 18th Annual Report by Retail International®, in a departure from previous years is presented as a strictly data driven document with a host of key facts illustrated by high quality graphics and charts.

Simon Thomson, Founder and Principal of Retail International® speaking from London on publication of the Annual Report said “this year the Annual Report concentrates on providing the hard core raw data that the retail real estate industry needs at a time when the international economic outlook is still uncertain.” He continued, “facts are indisputable and provide an element of certainty which retailers and investors require in a time of market instability and speculation”.

The survey reveals some 10.3 million square metres of mall Gross Leasable Area (GLA) has been completed across the GCC - up from 9.5 million square metres a year ago. The total across the MENA region is approaching 12 million square metres with a further 8.5 million square metres under development or in the detailed planning stages.

Whilst Dubai continues to feature, the greatest growth in percentage terms over the next five years is expected to come from Abu Dhabi and Doha in The Gulf, and Tripoli, Libya in North Africa. The latter is hardly surprising due the negligible existing base of modern organized retail in Tripoli.

The one city however that outstrips all others in real terms of projected new organized retail floor space is Cairo with over 1.9 million square metres due to be added to the existing stock by 2015.

The report concludes that Libya and Syria are continuing to relax controls making these two relatively undeveloped markets as exciting opportunities for developers and retailers along with scope for more international brands in Tunisia and Morocco.

The full report can be obtained free from www.retailinternational.co.uk