Dubai’s Non-Oil Foreign Trade Crosses Dhs1 Trillion In 2013

Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade exceeded Dhs1 trillion during the first nine months of this year, a rise from Dhs918 billion for the same period in 2012.

According to Dubai Customs, Dubai’s third quarter imports touched Dhs610 billion compared to Dhs546 billion in 2012, and have been instrumental in boosting the emirate’s non-oil foreign trade growth in 2013.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, crown prince of Dubai and chairman of the Dubai Executive Council said that such strong growth in trade during the first three quarters would boost UAE’s status as a global hub for trade and reinforce Dubai’s position as an official gateway for international traders.

“Trade is one of the key pillars in the overall structure of our local economy and a main driver for its growth,” he said.

“We look at the rising curve in trade volumes as an indicator of the success of our developmental strategies.”

Sheikh Hamdan added that with Dubai poised to host Expo 2020, trade in the emirate is expected to grow tremendously in the coming years and will offer “unprecedented opportunities”.

“Dubai’s highly reliable and efficient infrastructure and quality logistic services will be strong assets to facilitate and support the expected trade growth across the region,” he said.

Statistics from Dubai Customs reveal that direct trade accounted for 64 per cent of the emirate’s foreign trade as it touched Dhs649 billion by the end of Q3, up from Dhs595 billion in 2012.

While free zones’ trade touched Dhs348 billion, customs warehouse trade doubled to Dhs12 billion, up from Dhs6 billion the previous year.

India was Dubai’s largest non-oil foreign trade partner with trade between the two regions reaching Dhs111 billion in 2013. China and the US were Dubai’s second and third largest trading partners this year with trade reaching Dhs99 billion and Dhs65 billion respectively.

Gold continued to constitute the largest share of Dubai’s exports and imports during the year. Other top imports included cellular devices, diamonds and sports cars while raw aluminium, petroleum oils, jewelry and tobacco were the emirate’s top exports.

Dubai has been recording strong growth in trade throughout this year and has been exceeding the estimated growth rates. The emirate’s non-oil foreign trade grew by 16 per cent in the first half of 2013, exceeding the estimated growth rate of 14 per cent.