FEATURE
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AHEAD Analyst Subash Joshi of Frost and Sullivan says that the industry must embrace services to thrive in a post-COVID-19 world
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lthough the last few months have shown how reliant countries are on the fleet and transport industries, they thrive best when the economy is booming. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic may have sent the global economy into a spin but there is hope that the GCC and the wider Middle East can be among those who come out in better shape. In fact, the signs are already there according to Subash Joshi, VP – Mobility and regional head (ME), Frost and Sullivan. In a wide-ranging overview 20
JULY-AUGUST 2020
of the market on behalf of Automechanika, however, he says that operators and those that supply should be preparing for a new normal where services are key. “We have done a comparison of GCC with the Eurozone, 11 countries in Asia, BRIC and NAFTA country. So, if you look at the Eurozone and NAFTA that are declining but if we compare Asean, GCC and BRIC countries, the GCC is among the fastest growing,” he notes. “In the entire Middle East region, the GCC is the fastest growing. It used to account for about 5.9 percent of the world GDP share back in 1990 and by 2030
In the entire Middle East region, the GCC is the fastest growing”
we’re expecting it to be 2.1% of the market share. Definitely, there is a short-term blip but in long-to-medium period, the GCC will bounce back and we are expecting it to become a $2.8 trillion economy by a 2030.” Part of this bounceback will be powered by the economic diversification that is underway in the GCC. “(Look at) Saudi – they are creating a multi-sector economy by year 2030 and it’s all to become more self-resilient and self-dependent. Oman is already way ahead of many countries in the GCC region and we will see a lot of development meconstructionnews.com
