By Sarah Algethami Staff Reporter www.gulfnews.com
Dubai: Mall of the World, the latest addition to Dubai’s retail, hospitality and leisure offering, is expected to boost visitor numbers and further strengthen the emirate’s mall development pipeline, industry experts said.
Mall of the World was launched on Saturday by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai.
The focus of activity in Dubai has shifted towards the retail and hospitality sectors as development ramps up in the lead up to the World Expo 2020, which Dubai won the bid to host last November, real estate consultancy Cluttons said in a statement.
“Dubai has a significant portfolio of existing shopping malls and the string of new mall developments looks set to push Dubai further ahead of the region’s other emerging economies,” stated Faisal Durrani, international research and business development Manager at Cluttons.
The consultancy expects some 7 million square feet of new malls with a size of over 1 million square feet to enter the market over the next two years, apart from the current mall expansion activity in the city.
The Dubai Financial Market also welcomed the news. The index went up 4.41 per cent on Sunday to end at 4,593.57. More info
