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8/26/24, 4:56 PM UAE foreign trade surges 11% to $379bn in first half of 2024
Thi s comes as the sha re of non-oil exports of the UAE’s total foreign trade
stands at 18.4 percent.
Thi s aligns with the UAE’s focus on foreign trade as a key element of its
economic strategy, recognizing its crucial role in driving industrial output,
boosting global competitiveness, and fostering innovation.
She ikh Moha mmed bin Rashi d Al-Maktoum, UAE vice president and prime
minister and ruler of Dubai, said: “A few years ago, we set ambitious national
economic goals, aiming for 4 trillion dirhams in foreign trade by 2031 — a goal
tha t was seen as hi ghl y cha llenging at the time.”
He added: “Today, the gures for the rst half of 2024 show that our exports in
just six months ha ve equaled wha t we used to export in an entire year before
the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. Our foreign trade is nearing 1.4 trillion
dirha ms in the se six months , with a 25 percent growth in non-oil exports. Our
target is to achi eve 3 trillion dirhams in non-oil foreign trade by the end of this
year.”
Dubai’s ruler also noted tha t economic relations with various countries had
strengthe ned, with trade increasing by 10 percent with India, 15 percent with
Türkiye, and 41 percent with Iraq, which had become the top destination for
UAE exports, followed by India, Turkiye, and others.
UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Al-Zeyoudi noted that key
sectors such as gold, silver, and jewelry, as well as oils, perfumes, aluminum,
copper wires, and iron products, were instrumental in the rise of non-oil
exports, re
ecting the country’s improved global competitiveness.
“Our re-export operations also increased, highlighting our status as a global
trade hu b and re
ecting international condence in the UAE as a reliable trade
partner and facilitator. Moreover, our performance dees the global trend of
slowing trade growth, whi ch averaged just 1.5 percent in the rst half of this
year,” he added.
The minister continued by stating that this achievement highlights the UAE
economy’s resilience, a result of the nation’s steadfast commitment to building
strong public-private partnershi ps and fostering collaborative growth with
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