More growth predicted for UAE

UAE Economic Growth

Analysts are predicting a good 2010 for the UAE, after enduring a testing time since the global financial crisis hit.

Growth in the UAE economy could exceed 4.5 percent next year, according to the governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). He added that he was not concerned about inflation following a shake-out in the real estate sector, denying that banks would need any further injections of liquidity.

The property sector in the UAE can't really get any worse after "bottoming out" since the economic downturn, so an uptick in fortune is pretty much the only way things can go.

"Stable, credible growth"

"You don't want high inflation in this area, you want stable growth, and you want credible growth," said Omar bin Sulaiman, deputy chairman of the UAE central bank and governor of the DIFC.

"At the same time, it was a good filtration process," he said of the plunge in the property sector that followed a boom.

"Today you have a lot of credible opportunities in the real estate sector," he added.

Despite being tightly squeezed by the downturn, the overall economy is expected to grow between 3.5 percent and 4.5 percent.

Benefiting from oil

"I wouldn't be surprised if we've seen higher numbers from UAE in 2010," he said, referring to the forecasts and citing the federation's infrastructure as an engine that would accelerate recovery.

As the world's third largest oil exporter, the hike in oil value has held the Kingdom's cause, and will continulargest oil exportee to do so as investors return to both the oil market and the Middle East region.

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