(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Dubai's economy picked up in November as tourist activity increased against the previous month, an economic survey of the emirate shows.
The Dubai economy tracker, a survey of business conditions in the emirate, rose to 53.4 in November, up from 51.9 in October. Any score above 50 indicates economic expansion, the UAE National newspaper reported.
That was the result of increased activity in tourism, retail and construction, the survey indicated. Peak season for Dubai is the cooler, winter months.
Absolute occupancy in October was above historic trends for the month, according to travel forecaster STR Global. The Dubai economy tracker showed activity in the tourist sector growing to 52.2 last month, up from 49.9 in October.
"Activity in the travel and tourism sector has improved as we head into the 'high season' for hospitality,", the head of Mena research at Emirates NBD, Khatija Haque said.
But economists expect Dubai's economy to slow following the second decline in the oil price this month and a probable interest rate rise this month from the US Federal Reserve.
"It's coming from all directions," the chief economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Monica Malik said Monica Malik. "With the strong dollar, the low oil price and falling Dubai housing prices, it's a challenging environment." Oil fell to $37.93 per barrel on Friday, its lowest level for seven years, in a move that will cause further pain for Gulf economies that are tied closely to the oil price. The price move followed an Opec meeting at which the group suspended production quotas, leading oil markets to predict further declines in prices as new Iranian production adds to total output.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.