McArthur, who is managing director of Shopping Centers andCommercial Real Estate at the Group, said that the Chinese outboundtourist market is expected to rise to 100 million a year by 2020.China has a population of 1.3 billion and its economy grew at 9% in2005. He also told the International Council of Shopping CentersIndustry Forum that Chinese tourists have one of the highest retailspends in the world, with an average of $175 a day.

"According to Retail International, Dubai's retailers alone haveto generate $8 billion in sales in 2009 to sustain the massiveincrease in shopping center space and retail activities. Thelucrative outbound Far-East tourist markets will be an importantsource in achieving this", McArthur added.

He went on to say that, with more than 101.2 million sf ofretail expected to come on stream throughout the Middle East by theend of the decade, retailers are targeting a slice of the Chinesemarket. Developers are not only looking to Chinese tourists tosustain economic growth, but also to its retailers to take units.Dashang, one of China's largest retailers and ranked 96th out ofthe top 500 Chinese companies, is looking to open a number ofstores in the Middle East, McArthur said.