The average Asian salary across the GCC posted the strongest increase among all three racial groups this year, rising 1.57 per cent from $9,231 per month in last year’s survey to $9,376 per month in the 2017 Gulf Business Salary Survey.

Ian Giulianotti, director at one of our participating recruiters Nadia, indicates that the pay difference between different expat groups is closing slowly but surely, but in the immediate term the Gulf’s economic slump means many Asian expats are finding riper opportunities back home.

“This year, one million more Indians left the Middle East than arrived,” he says. “For a professional in India last year, the average pay rise was between 12 to 14 per cent.

“A lot of Indian bankers at middle to senior management – now they’ve got international experience – are going back to India.”

In comparison, opportunities elsewhere are deemed less compelling for Arabic and Western expats, with more protectionist travel policies in the case of the former and currency movements linked to Brexit for the latter meaning most are expected to stay in the region.

The Gulf Business 2017 Salary Survey polled the average remuneration for 20 roles, including finance, real estate and media, across the six Gulf countries.

Average monthly salary in USD ($) for an Asian expatriate employee in the Gulf

	BAHRAIN	KSA	KUWAIT	UAE	OMAN	QATAR
CEO/MD – Multinational	23,292	34,824	31,322	30,997	28,505	33,319
CEO/MD – Local Company	16,541	22,251	18,653	19,278	17,155	20,981
Human Resources – Manager	7,378	10,070	8,358	10,598	8,244	9,544
Information Technology – Manager	9,089	12,112	10,163	10,908	9,956	11,929
Sales/Marketing – Account Manager	4,918	5,950	5,022	5,520	4,755	5,390
Legal – Lawyer Marketer/Manager	7,406	9,773	8,619	8,940	7,922	9,405
Facilities Management – Manager	5,567	8,607	7,402	7,608	6,930	8,330
Finance & Accounting – Manager	6,269	8,369	7,403	7,371	6,746	8,268
Recruitment – Manager	5,532	8,098	6,609	6,356	6,343	7,045
Healthcare – General Practitioner/ Manager	7,313	11,194	8,257	8,692	8,257	9,330
Real Estate – Manager	8,213	10,152	8,700	6,743	9,050	11,147
Banking – Branch Manager	7,499	9,356	7,019	7,774	6,432	8,093
Banking – Treasury Manager	9,417	13,644	10,761	11,305	10,544	12,096
Banking – Retail/Personal Banking Manager	6,846	8,892	7,855	8,113	7,184	8,570
Media – Advertising Creative Manager	7,262	8,988	7,429	7,742	6,774	7,896
Media – Public Relations Manager	5,536	8,178	6,796	6,866	5,849	7,463
Media – Publishing Editor	5,080	6,128	5,323	5,437	5,589	6,205
Construction – Project Manager	8,300	10,897	9,233	9,513	8,347	10,620
Events – Manager	4,295	5,146	4,400	5,159	4,410	5,047
Executive Secretary/PA	3,317	4,437	3,640	3,753	3,505	4,232

The 2017 salary survey was compiled based on inputs from regional recruitment companies including Nadia and Charterhouse. Click here for the complete report.