DUBAI- Saudi Arabia's Alkhabeer Capital plans to list a property trust on the stock exchange, the company said on Tuesday.

The Saudi capital market authority earlier this month approved Alkhabeer's request to list the REIT, or real estate investment trust, units. 

Saudi Arabia's Tadawul stock exchange has witnessed a flurry of REIT activity this year, with eight listings in the first half of, according to a PWC report in August.

The exchange began listing real estate investment trusts (REITs) in 2016, in a move that allows investors to access the local real estate market through the purchase of existing and developed property.

The trusts are securities which trade on stock markets but invest directly in properties and distribute profits as dividends.

The value of the assets exceed 1 billion riyals ($266.60 million) and the initial public offering size is valued at 237 million riyals ($63.18 million), it said in a statement.

The fund invests in seven income-producing real estate assets in Riyadh, Jeddah and Tabuk, the statement added.

($1 = 3.7509 riyals)

(Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli and Hadeel Al Sayegh; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Louise Heavens) ((maher.chmaytelli@thomsonreuters.com; +9647901917030;))