DUBAI: Dubai unveiled a 2020 budget yesterday projecting record spending of $18.1 billion, up 17 percent on this year, as it seeks to revive its flagging economy. The Gulf city state expects revenues too to rise sharply next year as it hosts Expo 2020, the global six-month trade fair set to open on October 20.

But it still foresees a deficit for the fourth year in a row of $700 million. The government is hoping that Expo will draw some 25 million visitors, many of them from abroad, and is projecting a 25 percent increase in revenues to $17.4 billion. Dubai is the only government in the Gulf not dependent on hydrocarbon revenues, and projects around 94 percent of income to come from non-oil sources. Dubai is renowned for its skyscrapers, like the world's tallest building Burj Khalifa, but its key property sector has been sliding since 2014.

Last year, growth slowed to 1.94 percent, less half the 2017 figure and the worst in a decade. It picked up slightly to 2.1 percent in the first half of this year but the government is keen to do more to stimulate consumer spending and the real estate market.

Emaar Properties is selling the observation decks of the world's tallest skyscraper the Burj Khalifa, four sources told Reuters, potentially raising $1 billion for Dubai's biggest developer amid a real estate downturn. Two of the sources said Emaar had appointed Standard Chartered to advise it on the sale of the popular "At The Top" tourist attraction.

Emaar, in which the Dubai government has a minority stake of 29.2%, and Standard Chartered declined to comment. At over 828 meters, the Burj Khalifa is twice as tall as New York's Empire State Building and nearly three times the height of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

At The Top is a popular tourist destination in Dubai, which attracted 15.92 million overnight visitors in 2018. The viewing decks make about 600-700 million dirhams ($163-$191 million) a year, a banking source said. A financial source estimated they could be worth around $1 billion. The sales process began in November, both of these sources said, declining to be named as the deal is not public.

Dubai is a regional hub for tourism, foreign trade and business services, but has faced a slowing real estate market for most of the decade. It set up a real estate planning commission in September to regulate projects and avoid competition between semi-government and private firms.

Emaar has been divesting hospitality related assets to finance existing operations and expansion, an industry source and a Dubai-based banker said. Emaar hired Standard Chartered earlier this year for the sale of its district cooling business, and last year for the disposal of five hospitality assets, which were sold to Abu Dhabi National Hotels. - Agencies