UAE retail sales set to hit USD $ 143 billion by 2013

Retailing will continue to be one of the fastest growing sectors of the UAE economy with sales expected to grow by 37 percent over the next five years to USD $ 142.6 billion, a study has found. The worlds biggest retailers will continue to expand their operations in the UAE, thanks to the countrys strong economic growth, increasing household consumption, use of modern retailing concepts and expatriate wealth, said Research & Markets, a market research company based in Ireland. The UAEs average per capita GDP, a sign of economic health is forecast to increase by 17 percent to USD $ 60,753 from 2008 to 2013. Retail sales in the Middle East in 2008 reached about USD $ 382 billion, the firm said.