The construction
upturn in the Gulf
has triggered
new expansion
plans in the
area among not
only European,
but also Asian
coatings
producers.
Gulf Region of Middle East
Sees Recovery in Coatings Market
by Sean Milmo
European Correspondent
milmocw@rodmanmedia.com
After a sharp downturn following the 2008 financial crisis, growth in coat- ings demand in the Gulf region of the
Middle East is now surging forward again.
This recovery was symbolized in late
November by the announcement that Dubai,
which was dubbed the construction capital
of the world during the boom years of the
mid-2000s, will be the site of the World Expo
trade convention of 2020. The emirate, which
is part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE),
aims to spend $8.4 billion on the six-month
event with a huge exhibition center, new hotels and expanded transport infrastructure.
Two years later nearby Qatar will be hosting
the World Cup, on which it has already started
work on the building of 12 new or extended
soccer stadia at a total cost of over $100 billion.
The construction upturn in the Gulf has triggered new expansion plans in the area among
not only European but also Asian coatings
producers, many of whom bundle Europe, the
Middle East and Africa into a single entity in
their marketing strategies.
Some of them did well in the region in the
years prior to 2008 when coatings sales in its
oil and gas rich countries increased rapidly, particularly in a burgeoning construction sector.
However during the new period of fast
growth, international coatings companies will
be confronted with changing market conditions. Construction will continue to be the cornerstone of the market. But overall it will be a
much broader coatings sector. It will be serving
a more diversified Gulf economy less dependent on oil and gas revenues by having a lot
more capacity for downstream manufacturing.
