UAE’s trade surplus with GCC countries equals Dhs134.7bn in 2021

The UAE’s trade surplus with other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in 2021 was valued at Dhs134.7bn.

This marked a 26 per cent increase in trade between the UAE and GCC countries in 2021, with a value of Dhs247.5bn and weighing 68.7 million tonnes, compared to Dhs196.5bn in 2020 with a weight of 59.9 million tonnes, according to figures from the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre.

UAE imports from GCC countries in 2021 increased to Dhs56.3bn, weighing 27.9 million tonnes, compared to Dhs43.8bn with a weight of 26.5 million tonnes in 2020.

Meanwhile, the country’s non-oil exports to GCC countries at the end of 2021 stood at Dhs71.9bn, weighing 36.4 million tonnes, compared to Dhs48.8bn with a weight of 29.3 million tonnes at the end of 2020, official news agency WAM reported.

The value of re-exports at the end of last year amounted to Dhs119.1bn, weighing 4.3 million tonnes, compared to Dhs103.8bn with a weight of 4.08 million tonnes at the end of 2020.

The UAE Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 55.6 in May from 54.6 in April, remaining above the 50 mark that separates expansion from contraction.

Read: Inflation doesn’t stop UAE’s biggest business upswing this year

Output in the country’s non-oil economy increased at the fastest pace since last December and employment saw a renewed increase, according to a survey published by S&P Global on June 3.

Further inputs from the survey revealed, the rate of job creation in the UAE was quickest in seven months. Moreover, strong price competition led companies to refrain from passing on higher costs to customers.