Construction project awards slow down YTD: Saudi Arabia awarded USD 20.6 bn in construction projects so far this year, lagging behind the UAE's USD 31 bn, Bloomberg reports, citing data from intelligence platform Meed. The Kingdom awarded a record USD 152 bn in construction contracts last year.

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Gigaprojects on the back burner: Gigaprojects have seen only USD 4 bn in awarded contracts so far this year, as the Kingdom is conducting a comprehensive review of major projects to address funding pressures, rising costs, and current market demand. The more cautious approach involves recalibrating its development agenda to prioritize time-sensitive international events like the 2029 Asian Winter Games, the 2034 Fifa World Cup, and Expo 2030.

A rebound in 2H? Saudi Arabia could still retake the lead from the UAE by year-end, driven by a surge in contracts for World Cup stadiums expected in the second half of 2025, Bloomberg said. However, if the UAE maintained its lead through year-end, it would be the first time to come out ahead since 2018.

No shortage of projects in the long term: While near-term project awards have slowed, the Kingdom continues to hold the most robust pipeline of future developments in the region, with some USD 1.6 tn worth of projects announced but not yet awarded, according to Meed data.

The regional picture: Construction across the Gulf has broadly slowed compared to previous years, driven by global economic headwinds and financial pressure from oil prices that are too low to balance many regional budgets, Bloomberg analysts said.

REMEMBER- Saudi Arabia’s contract awards fell by 49.9% y-o-y to USD 17 bn in 1Q 2025, reducing the country’s share of GCC projects to 32.4%, Kamco Invest said in its GCC Projects Market Update. This contributed to a 26.8% regional decline in awards to a two-year low of USD 52.4 bn.

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