Deloitte Middle East Point of View magazine: Back to work?

17 May, 2021 – The future of public health, Dubai’s real estate performance in 2020 and fuel retail businesses and changing landscapes are discussed by Deloitte experts in the latest edition of Deloitte’s Middle East Point of View (ME POV) magazine.

Dunia Joulani and Manika Dhama look at Dubai’s real estate market in 2020 and emerging trends. “There is an opportunity to showcase Dubai during 2021 in a post- Covid world to both visitors and residents,” they write and that “the market recovery to 2019 levels is not expected until the end of 2023, or later.”

Bart Cornelissen, Carmen Hamze, Abdellatif Smairi and Tatiana Ibrahim examine the changing paradigms of the fuel retail business in their article Future-proof: Fuel retail businesses and changing landscapes. They note that “the landscape in which GCC fuel retailers operate is being reshaped by certain macro-forces […] These forces are also coupled with a change in fuel retailer customer behavior.” As such: “Players in the GCC fuel retail market need to fundamentally reimagine and update ways of working to appeal to the customer base which […] is experiencing a shift in their preferences and behaviors.”

Damian Regan in his article The coming of ESG reporting focuses on the role that companies can play in ensuring sustainability, and says: “The recent Covid-19 pandemic serves as an example of how something largely beyond our short-term control can have a devastating impact globally.

Holly Byrnes and Abi Man Joshi in their article Sovereign and special talk about a different kind of sustainability, that of the global economy and the role that sovereign wealth funds (SWF) play in it.

Rana Shashaa, Waqas Ahmed, Tom Howitt and Paul Huck, look at enhanced due diligence for lenders and financiers. They say: “As the global and regional economy starts to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, large corporates will arguably need access to credit as never before.”

In their article on the future of public health in a post-Covid world, Elsy Maria Dumit Abdelhamid Suboh and Rohan Sawhney and write: “As we progress through [the pandemic] and the subsequent global mental health pandemic we are likely to face, a future of public health that is personalized, participatory, predictive, and precise will help us navigate changed public health principles and how we deal with ourselves.”

Zaynah Vohra writes about inspiring trust through enhanced governance. “Effective implementation of internal control over financial reporting will surely help shield capital markets from the impacts of uncertainty and support investor confidence in the region to thrive,” she says. 

Fernand Rutten and Shaimaa Husseiny assess the risks and opportunities offered by free zones in the Gulf region. “While companies operating out of free zones in the GCC benefit from a lot of facilitation of the goods clearance and movements in addition to the customs duty suspension, they do face a maze of complex import, export and border security regulations.”

− To download the Middle East Point of View Spring 2021 - pdf version, click here

−  To subscribe to the Middle East Point of View, send contact details to middleeast@deloitte.com

About Deloitte & Touche (M.E.) LLP:

Deloitte & Touche (M.E.) LLP (DME) is the affiliate for the territories of the Middle East and Cyprus of Deloitte NSE LLP (“NSE”), a UK limited liability partnership and member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, a UK private company limited by guarantee (“DTTL”).

DME is a leader in professional services with uninterrupted presence in the Middle East since 1926 with 26 offices in 14 countries and around 5,000 partners, directors and staff. DME’s presence in the Middle East and Cyprus is established through its affiliated independent legal entities, which are licensed to operate and to provide services under the applicable laws and regulations of the relevant country. DME’s affiliates and related entities cannot oblige each other and/or DME, and when providing services, each affiliate and related entity engages directly and independently with its own clients and shall only be liable for its own acts or omissions and not those of any other affiliate.

About Deloitte:

Deloitte refers to one or more of DTTL, its global network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL (also referred to as “Deloitte Global”) and each of its member firms are legally separate and independent entities, which cannot obligate or bind each other in respect of third parties. DTTL and each DTTL member firm and related entity is liable only for its own acts and omissions, and not those of each other. DTTL, NSE and DME do not provide services to clients. Please see www.deloitte.com/about to learn more.

Deloitte is a leading global provider of audit and assurance, consulting, financial advisory, risk advisory, tax and related services. Our network of member firms in more than 150 counties and territories, serves four out of five Fortune Global 500® companies. Learn how Deloitte’s approximately 300,000 people make an impact that matters at www.deloitte.com.