News And Publications

Dubai’s real estate sector delivered a strong performance in the first quarter of 2026, with total transactions reaching AED252 billion, marking a 31% year-on-year increase in value and a 6% rise in volume, reflecting sustained momentum and investor confidence.

The Dubai Debt Management Office (DMO) has completed a non-deal fixed income investor roadshow as part of its investor engagement exercises. The engagement focused on global fixed income investors across Asia, Europe, and the United States comprising in-person and virtual meetings, which reinforces the DMO’s commitment to transparency and sound public debt management.

Key Takeaways:

• Dubai Airports today announced that Dubai International (DXB) welcomed 95.2 million guests in 2025, up 3.1% year on year, marking the busiest year in the airport’s history and the highest annual international passenger traffic ever recorded by any airport.
• More significantly, 2025 was defined not by a single peak, but by sustained performance at record levels. DXB achieved its busiest day, month, quarter and year on record, operating at the edge of physical capacity while consistently delivering operational excellence. What would represent extraordinary strain elsewhere has become part of DXB's normal operating rhythm.
• December closed as the busiest month in DXB history, with 8.7 million guests, up 6.1% year on year. The fourth quarter was also the busiest ever, with 25.1 million guests, an increase of 5.9% compared to the same period in 2024.
• Total flight movements reached 118,000 in Q4, up 5%, bringing the annual total to 454,800 a rise of 3.3% year on year. Despite continued growth in movements, average passengers per movement remained strong at 214, reflecting sustained deployment of larger aircraft and high load efficiency. The annual load factor stood at 77.6%, a marginal adjustment of 0.5 percentage points.

Key Takeaways:

• Dubai’s tourism industry achieves third successive record-breaking year with 19.59 million international visitors in 2025, up 5% YoY
• Strategic partnerships, global marketing campaigns and major events contributed to Dubai welcoming 19.59 million international overnight visitors in 2025, marking a 5% increase compared to 18.72 million arrivals in 2024, according to data published by the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), and a third successive year of record-setting figures. The city ended the year by welcoming more than 2 million visitors in a single calendar month for the first time in December, building strong momentum heading into 2026.