Commercial and apartments sales pick up

KUWAIT: In its latest economic brief on the monthly statistics of registered real estate contracts issued by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), excluding sales conducted through agents, National Bank of Kuwait reports that the value of real estate sales increased slightly in April.

A total of KD 96.7 million worth of transactions was registered, up by 8% from March. Year-on-year, sales fell by 42.6% in number and by 53% value. NBK notes that the rise in the value of sales was led by the commercial sector, which surged by 51%. Sales of apartments also rose by 13%, while residential sales dropped by 8%.

More detailed data from the Ministry of Justice (MOJ, not shown in the tables) reveal that more than half of all residential sector transactions were accounted for by sales of existing homes, rather than new plots. Meanwhile, two areas that are among the most active markets for privately held vacant plots, Abu Futaira and Ishbilya, both represented 58% of the total traded vacant residential plots. Despite the fact that these areas are relatively far from Kuwait City, there has been an increased interest inthem, perhaps due to the completion of infrastructure.