Dubai’s non-oil trade with the world has hit a record in January. It reached more than AED 55 billion, a 28% increase compared to the same period last year that scored AED 43 billion.
HE Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Executive Chairman of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, and Director General of Dubai Customs said that Dubai Customs’ statistics shows that Dubai has maintained regular average growth in its trade with the world at 19% which is considered the highest compared to the same period in the last five years which clearly indicates the return of the ascending growth in the emirate’s external trade.
HE added that the increase in signifies the presence of a score of opportunities for businesses in Dubai which benefited from Dubai’s sophisticated infrastructure, its several facilitations and its legislations and laws that ensure competitive market and equal opportunities for all.
“System upgrading and modernization projects carried out by Dubai Customs contributed a lot in facilitating legitimate trade movement between Dubai and its partners around the world, and helped, at the same time, foster Dubai status as a major hub for transcontinental trade between West and East” HE added.
“The growth of January was most noticeable in export operation which increased 35%, or more than AED 6.6 billion compared to AED 4.9 billion in the same period last year. Meantime, re-exporting increased 31%, or AED 13.7 billion compared to AED 10.5 billion in the same period last year.
Dubai Customs’ Director General attributed this growth to what Dubai offered including logistic services, strategic location, advanced customs systems, expansion in maritime activities and Dubai’s potency in supporting legitimate trade and prevention of restricted goods.
HE explained that imports took the lead in Dubai trade with external world with 63% of Dubai’s January non-oil trade with external world which totalled AED 35 billion, an increase of 26% compared to same period’s imports of last year which reached AED 27.8 billion.
India maintained its position as the biggest country that has non-oil trade with Dubai in all export, import, and re-export operations. The total value of trade exchanges between the two sides reached AED 15.8 billion in January, or 29% of Dubai’s total trade exchange with the world.
Meantime, China and UK came second and third consecutively in imports with approximately AED 4 billion for China and AED 3 billion for the UK. Singapore came in the second place in the list of the exporting countries to Dubai with AED 566 million followed by Thailand with AED 359 million.