Dubai property prices down 0.9pc in third quarter

DUBAI: Dubai property prices fell 0.9% year on year in the third quarter after they were little changed in the previous quarter, a UAE central bank report said.

The coronavirus pandemic has increased pressure on Dubai's property market, which for years has seen supply outstrip demand for new houses and apartments.

But the Dubai data showed property prices were stabilising after a 3.5% decline in the first quarter from a year earlier.

Citing data from the Dubai Land Department, the central bank said rents in Dubai fell 6.9% year on year in the third quarter, continuing their declining trend.

The emirate of Abu Dhabi's property prices fell 5.5% in the third quarter but quarter-on-quarter prices were up 0.9%, the central bank said.

Rents in Abu Dhabi declined by 3.9% year on year in the third quarter.

The UAE economy is expected to contract by 6% in 2020, hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and oil output cuts, but it is projected to rebound to growth of 2.5% in 2021, led by non-oil GDP growth, the central bank said.