The chairman of Emaar, Dubai’s largest listed property developer, says he is “cautiously optimistic” about the market after a “tough” 2016, according to reports.

Mohamed Alabbar said on Monday he was hoping for a better year after difficult conditions seen last year, according to Reuters.

Emaar has an $11.4 billion backlog of projects, he said at an investment conference in Dubai, the newswire reported.

Dubai has seen house prices slide following a strong recovery in the wake of the financial crisis.

Standard & Poor’s said that house prices in Dubai fell by between 8 and 11% in 2016 while rents declined 6 per cent, according to reports.

The credit rating agency forecasted in February that property prices and rents in Dubai would fall by a further 5 and 10 per cent this year.