In the week ending 30 January, the Gulf Projects Index declined by 0.1 per cent, with the ongoing conflict in Iraq weighing heavily on the region’s projects market.

Iraq saw the biggest decrease over the week, falling by 1 per cent, as four schemes were put on hold, including the $4.4bn Korea Gas Corporation (Kogas) project to develop the Akkas gas field. The field is located in the country’s Anbar province and holds 2.1 trillion cubic feet of gas. Its development was intended to help grow Iraq’s natural gas output to 2.5 trillion cubic feet a year by 2018.

Iraq’s projects market has contracted by 22.7 per cent since the jihadist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria took Mosul in June 2014, with a total of $117.7bn wiped off its value.

The latest decline in Iraq’s projects market comes amid renewed fighting near the oil fields of Kirkuk, around the border town of Kobane and north of Baghdad in the city of Samarra.

Kuwait and Qatar also recorded significant dips in the value of their projects markets. Kuwait’s projects market declined by 0.5 per cent over the week, as three schemes were completed, including a $417m new headquarters building for the central bank in Kuwait City.

Qatar’s projects market also saw a contraction of 0.5 per cent. The decrease was driven by 11 completed schemes with a total value of $986bn.

The week’s gainers were Saudi Arabia, Iran and Oman. Saudi Arabia’s projects market expanded by 0.4 per cent as five new schemes were announced. Iran grew by 0.3 per cent as $500m was added to its projects market.

Oman recorded an expansion of 0.3 per cent, buoyed by the announcement of a $300m scheme to build a tram system in Muscat.