The total value of major projects planned or under way in the Gulf on the 30 November was $2.92 trillion, a fall of 1 per cent on the previous week, according to the latest Gulf projects index.

According to the tracker, the bulk of the decrease was due to a 1.3 per cent fall in the total value of projects planned or under way in the GCC, which accounts for about 77 per cent of the Gulf projects market.

Despite the launch of eight new projects worth a total of $2.3bn, the GCC’s project index decreased as 17 projects totalling $8.9bn were completed and $23.5bn worth of projects were put on hold.

The bulk of the slide can be attributed to decreases in the projects indexes of Qatar and Oman, which saw falls of 3.9 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively.

In Qatar, the fall can be explained by a $10bn real-estate project being put on hold.

In Oman, the $1.2bn Omagine tourism development was put on hold.

Saudi Arabia’s projects market also slipped by 1.4 per cent after the $9.3bn Al-Shamiyah Mecca project was put on hold.

However, the kingdom did also witness the launch of the biggest new project in the region, the estimated $1.1bn Jeddah Housing project.

The UAE’s project market witnessed a smaller decline of 0.7 per cent, as 10 real-estate projects worth a total of $2.25bn were put on hold.

The overall projects index is still positive when compared with the previous year, with the Gulf market achieving a 9.5 per cent year-on-year increase.

Iraq maintains its position as the region’s fastest-growing market by recording a 116.5 per cent year-on-year increase.