Dubai: Dubai investors are not pulling the plug on their business in Turkey just yet, despite the worsening economic climate there.
A number of local businesspeople have told Gulf News that they intend to remain present in the country, as the Turkish lira slides to record lows against the dollar.
The investors declined to speak publicly, asking to remain anonymous.
Meanwhile, Turkish developer Agaoglu, which once courted Gulf investors at real estate shows such as Cityscape, has shuttered its office in Dubai. It is unclear when the base, which opened in 2013 on Sheikh Zayed Road close to Business Bay, closed down.
With its office in Dubai, the company’s first outside of Turkey, Agaoglu became the only Turkish developer to operate in the UAE.
“Although the lira has slipped against the dollar and the pound, its weakness is less of a factor for overseas investors than the broader economic and geopolitical landscape in Turkey,” said Kate Everett-Allen, a partner in residential research at property firm Knight Frank.
While UAE investor appetite for Turkish property cooled over the first three months of the year, those from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait feature in the top six countries in terms of investment value.
Iraqi and Iranian investors were placed first and third, respectively, while Saudis occupied the second spot.
“GCC buyers covered 17 per cent of total residential unit sales to foreign buyers in the first quarter of 2018,” said Huma Kartal, research analyst at the Turkish company Pamir & Soyuer. “But annual residential unit sales to foreign buyers are lower than 2 per cent of total residential sales, at around 20,000 units a year.”