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(Bloomberg) -- The Dubai Mercantile Exchange, an oil futures market in the United Arab Emirates, reported record trading volume of its Oman Crude Oil Futures contract in October.

Average daily volume reached a high of 2,624 contracts last month, the exchange said in an e-mailed statement today. Average volume in 2009 has risen 58 percent from last year to 2,012 contracts a day, the DME said.

The DME’s only product is the Oman crude futures contract, which allows investors to trade at market prices and receive physical deliveries of the oil in Oman. The exchange, located in the Dubai International Financial Centre, is 25 percent-owned by government investment company Tatweer. CME Group Inc. and the Oman Investment Fund each own a quarter of the bourse.

October volume exceeded the previous record of 2,421 average daily contracts set in June after the exchange said Dubai would start pricing its crude oil based on the Oman futures contract. Trading reached a one-day record of 8,076 contracts on June 23, the DME said.

The start of trading of the Oman contracts on the CME’s electronic platform in February helped boost volumes by making them more accessible to investors worldwide, Chief Executive Officer Thomas Leaver said in an interview in June. Interest in the contract comes mainly from the U.S., Europe and Asia rather than the Middle East, he said at the time.

The real estate sector in Saudi Arabia continues to retain its appeal, despite the global recession and property market downturn. Saudi Arabia, the GCC's largest economy, continues to focus on diversifying its economic activities. It is expected that the total investment in the kingdom's real estate sector will exceed the $400bn barrier by 2010.

The real estate sector in Saudi Arabia plays a vital role in the non-oil economy of the kingdom. Its contribution to the gross domestic product, which stood at of 6.8% in 2004, is expected to rise to 7.2% in 2009. In the meantime, the kingdom is expected to carry out ongoing projects at a total cost of SR2 trillion ($500bn).

Residential shortage

However, the residential real estate sector will remain unable to meet demand in the near future. The property sector, which official figures have as growing at an annual rate of 5.8% between 2004 and 2009, will continue its upward trend in the near future, but at a slower pace. Rental rates are expected to increase by between 5% and 10% in 2009.

According to official estimates, the number of occupied housing units in the kingdom totalled 4.3 million in 2007, of which about 50% are self-owned. If the kingdom seeks to meet demand, 1.5 million new homes will need to be built by 2015.

Reports have revealed that the real estate and construction sector in the kingdom provides one of the most attractive investment opportunities in the region, and there are more than 285 real estate projects valued at $260bn under construction or design.

The contribution of Saudi Arabia's real estate sector to the economy represents 5.1% GDP at SR55bn, amid expectations of further growth by the end of the Eighth Development Plan in 2009 at an annual rate of 5.8%, and to raise its share in GDP to 7.2%, making it an important focus, especially in light of current development experienced by Saudi Arabia.

(Bloomberg) -- Saudi Arabian and Dubai shares advanced, with Saudi’s index closing at its highest level in a year, as crude prices gained and better-than-expected earnings spurred confidence the worst of the economic crisis is over.

Samba Financial Group, Saudi Arabia’s second-largest bank, climbed the most in two weeks after reporting a profit that beat analysts’ estimates. Saudi Chemical Co., the distributor of pharmaceutical drugs, and Qatar Electricity and Water Co. also rose on reported profit gains. Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index added 1.6 percent to 6,449.81, the highest close since Oct. 18. The Dubai Financial Market General Index jumped 3 percent to 2,373.37, an 11-month high.

“The overall trend of earnings is better than expected and I don’t expect any big surprises,” said Mohamed Abu Ghoush, head of equity brokerage at Al-Ahli Bank in Doha. “Definitely oil above $74 is a very major factor for the GCC markets to gain today.”

Oil prices have gained 68 percent since the beginning of the year, helping the crude-dependent region bounce back from the global crisis. Oil climbed to $75.15 a barrel, its highest level this year, and last traded at $74.95. The six countries that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council supply 20 percent of the world’s oil.

Samba advanced 3.2 percent to 57.25 riyals, the biggest gain since Sept. 30. The lender said third-quarter profit rose to 1.21 billion riyals ($322.7 million) from 1.20 billion riyals in the year-earlier period as customer deposits increased. That exceeded the 1.06 billion-riyals average estimate of four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Saudi Chemical Co. climbed 2.8 percent to 36.5 riyals, its highest level in a year. Third-quarter net income more than doubled to 105 million riyals from 45 million riyals a year- earlier.

DUBAI — The UAE has improved its international standing to become one of the top five economies in terms of cost-efficiency and ease of cross-border trading, a World Bank report shows.

The World Bank’s “Doing Business” report for 2010, the latest annual evaluation of 183 economies, shows that the UAE is the most efficient export-import trading hub in the Middle East and Africa region.

The findings, released on Wednesday by Dubai Trade — a unit of Dubai World, were part of a broader World Bank study that earlier found the UAE to have improved its overall ranking in terms of “Ease of Doing Business.” That study’s “Trading Across Borders” index, which includes details of the costs and procedures necessary to import and export goods, ranks the UAE as fifth in the world, up from 13th last year.

The index shows that the UAE beats most other countries in cross-border trading efficiency thanks to its quick and hassle-free export and import procedures, in addition to its lower shipping costs.

The Emirates requires fewer documents for exports and imports compared with other countries in the Middle East and North Africa, or MENA region, as well as with the 30-member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD. The UAE requires four documents to export something and five documents to import it, the World Bank found.

The UAE takes on average less than half the time to complete importing and exporting — nine and eight days, respectively — than other countries in the MENA region. The UAE is also far more efficient in terms of the cost of shipping a container — at $593 per export container and $579 per import. This is nearly half the average shippng rates prevalent in MENA and OECD countries, the report shows.

The bank’s Doing Business survey ranks economies based on 10 indicators of government regulation, recording the time and cost required to meet official rules for starting and operating a business, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing down a business.

The UAE’s overall improvement in its World Bank ranking for “Ease of Doing Business” — to 33rd for 2010 from 47th for 200a9 — reflected the strength of its trade flow strategies, Dubai Trade said.

“By joining the world’s top five economies in cross-border trade, the UAE has proved the excellence of its forward-looking policies on trade facilitation,” said Jamal Majid bin Thaniah, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai World and Chairman of Dubai Trade.