United Arab Emirates relies on Asia-Pacific partners to accelerate growth of foreign trade

The UAE is increasingly turning to its partners in the Asia-Pacific region to develop its foreign trade in the region, which accounted for about 42 percent of the country's total non-oil trade in the first nine months of 2018.

Abdullah Al Saleh, undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy of the United Arab Emirates, said at the conference "The Future of Trade" jointly organized by Abdullah Al Saleh, the undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce. Economics of the United Arab Emirates. by the Dubai Multi Commodities Center and Asia House in Dubai yesterday. Total non-oil foreign trade reached 330 billion dollars (1,200 billion Dh), with a gross domestic product of 380 billion dollars for the period.

"In our program of developing our commercial relations with foreign countries, Asia is of paramount importance," said Al Saleh. "The Asian region contributes more than a third of world GDP and contributes 37% of world exports starting in 2017."

The UAE, the second largest economy in the Arabian Gulf, has been actively seeking in recent years to expand its relations with Asian partners in order to strengthen their commercial ties and attract foreign direct investment.

FDI from China, the UAE's largest trading partner in Asia, was valued at $ 9.1 billion at the end of 2017, divided between the oil, gas, infrastructure, finance, construction, and construction sectors. telecommunications and trade, said Al Saleh. China is already the UAE's largest import partner and non-oil foreign trade between China and the country amounted to $ 53.3 billion in 2017, which is expected to grow to $ 70 billion. dollars in 2020.

"In addition to increasing petrochemical exports to the country, the UAE hopes to become a major transhipment hub in China's logistics corridor," he said, adding that the port of Jebel Ali, in Dubai, was already a well-established bridge between Europe and Africa. exports. The free zone has more than 230 Chinese enterprises.

India, the third largest economy in Asia, is also a major economic partner of the UAE. Priced at $ 180 million a year in the 1970s, the volume of trade balance between India and the United Arab Emirates now stands at $ 57 billion, making India the largest UAE's second largest trading partner in the region.

In 2018, Indian investors completed 31 FDI projects in Dubai representing a total value of 3.71 billion dirhams, making it the second largest investor in the emirate in terms of invested capital and the fourth in terms of projects during the first nine months of 2018, said Mr. Al Saleh.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman of DMCC, told the conference that the center, one of the world's largest in terms of business line, is looking beyond cover to grow and attract companies around the world.

"If you look at the headlines of the last two years, you will find that there are still challenges ahead," he said.

The considerable improvement in the "ease of doing business" in Dubai has increased the number of companies that house the DMCC to more than 16,000, and the goal is to increase this number to 30,000 by 2030. Mr. Al Saleh.