It’s fair to say that 2017 has seen mixed performance and sentiment across markets and sectors in the Middle East region, with terms such as optimism and concern being deployed in equal measure. But the term best used to describe the region, despite the unprecedented events of the past year, is resilience.
Major programmes have continued, new projects have been announced and there remains optimism and ambition for the region and its construction sector.
Looking forward into 2018, I believe that this will be a period of consolidation while the region gets used to the new norms politically and economically. This transition will not happen overnight and some will be quicker to respond to the changes than others. The levels of activity we have seen this year are likely to continue into much of next year, but we are unlikely to see a marked upturn until towards the end of 2018. There is still a tremendous amount of construction projects ongoing in the Middle East which still require funding. This, coupled with the regional uncertainties, means that there will be a holding pattern for much of 2018.
