Mideast's largest mall operator to expand amid vaccine hopes

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Middle East's largest operator of malls expects revenue and earnings to climb back to pre-pandemic levels by the end of next year and is moving full steam ahead with plans to develop its biggest mall ever.

In a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, Majid Al Futtaim CEO Alain Bejjani said business is steadily rebounding amid vaccine rollouts in some countries of the region, kicking 2021 off to a relatively strong start.

“We’re not out of the woods across the markets, but things are improving,” Bejjani said. “Going back to the pre-pandemic levels— to 2019 level— in my opinion, will happen by the end of 2022 in terms of financial results."

The company's plethora of retail and leisure holdings include the iconic Mall of the Emirates in Dubai, hundreds of VOX cinema screens and more than 350 Carrefour grocery stores in the Middle East and beyond. Named after its Emirati billionaire founder, the company's largest markets are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, but its reach extends as far as Pakistan, Kenya and Uzbekistan.

The company's projections of a rebound and its plans for expansion reflect the faster than anticipated recovery of Middle East economies from the coronavirus pandemic, though uneven vaccine distribution remains a concern.

Majid Al Futtaim, which employs some 43,000 people regionally, saw its revenue plummet by 7% to $8.9 billion last year and earnings drop by 19% to around $1 billion due to coronavirus lockdowns and restrictions. The hardest-hit side of the business was its leisure and entertainment arm, where revenue fell by 49% to $380 million and earnings plummeted by 122%, resulting in losses of $25 million.

Despite last year's slump, Majid Al Futtaim plans to unveil 30 new movie theater screens this year in...