UAE's Majid Al Futtaim to invest 16 billion Egyptian pounds in Egypt

                                                                          UAE's Majid Al Futtaim to invest 16 billion in Egypt 

Reuters: UAE's Majid Al Futtaim to invest 16 billion Egyptian pounds in Egypt over 2-3 years

The CEO of the UAE's Majid Al Futtaim Group told Reuters on Wednesday that his group has invested 28 billion Egyptian pounds in Egypt since the end of 2024 and will invest an additional 16 billion pounds over the next two to three years.

"We have invested about 28 billion Egyptian pounds in Egypt since the end of 2024 in several projects such as Mall of Egypt, City Centre, Vox Cinemas, and Carrefour stores," Alain Bejjani told Reuters in an interview at a hotel overlooking the Nile River in Cairo. "We will invest 16 billion Egyptian pounds over the next two to three years in Egypt, including 14 billion Egyptian pounds in the shopping mall sector."

Bejjani will open City Centre mall in Egypt on Thursday, with an investment cost of 9.35 billion Egyptian pounds. Majid Al Futtaim owns 48 Carrefour stores in Egypt, and by the end of next year, it will reach 60 branches. He added, "Egypt has achieved significant milestones in recent years, and this is a source of confidence for investors and for us as Majid Al Futtaim. We have been present in Egypt for more than 20 years and are keeping pace with developments." 

"Egypt's economic indicators are encouraging, and this gives us confidence."

Dubai-based Majid Al Futtaim is the largest shopping mall, retail, and leisure company in the Middle East and North Africa, operating in 15 markets worldwide. Bejjani said his group will open "seven Carrefour stores in Uzbekistan, in addition to the first branch in Uganda on the 16th of this month."

The company owns and operates approximately 26 shopping malls, 13 hotels, and four integrated city projects in the Middle East, as well as the Carrefour franchise in approximately 37 markets across the Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia, operating more than 280 stores.

Bejjani, who has been CEO of the company since February 2024, said, "We have an investment plan in Saudi Arabia of approximately 16 billion riyals, including 2 billion riyals for Vox Cinema screens... We currently have more than 100 screens, and there is a plan to reach 600 screens within five years."

"The cinema sector is very promising in Saudi Arabia, and there is a beginning of improvement in the consumer sector in Saudi Arabia. 2025 will be an important year for the improvement of the consumer sector. The investment plan began a year and a half ago and will end in three and a half years." In response to a question about Majid Al Futtaim's expectations for the retail and shopping malls sector in Dubai, Bejjani said, "The past two years have been difficult in the UAE, but there are some positive indicators regarding consumer confidence."

The economy in Dubai is suffering from slow growth due to a decline in the real estate sector and a slowdown in global trade, which has hurt office workers and consumer spending. He added, "2025 will be important for the UAE market with the Expo and the improvement taking place in Saudi Arabia... All of this will have a positive impact on the UAE. I am optimistic about the UAE."