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28 March 2024

Dubai non-oil trade up 19% to Dh425bn

Published
By Staff

Dubai's direct non-oil trade continued its increase at the end of the third quarter this year, jumping by 19 per cent to Dh425 billion compared to Dh358bn for the same period last year.

Ahmed Butti, the Executive Chairman of Ports, Free Zone and Customs Corporation, General Director of Dubai Customs said all Dubai's non-oil trade indicators have showed positive results during the period from January to September 2010, and that meant a continuous economic recovery and improvement.

He explained that both exporting and re-exporting activities have hit a record in the nine-month period of this year compared to the same period over the last five years.

Director General of Dubai Customs added that statistics showed that non-oil exports value has exceeded Dh50 billion with the end of the third quarter of 2010, which means an increase of 38 per cent compared to the same period of last year which recorded Dh36.5 billion of exports.

He said that these figures reflected the competitive potency of the UAE local products in the international markets, and their high quality, and its diversified production base which provides exporters with different options.

Butti said that re-export activity has grown considerably during the same period with a value that reached Dh106 billion, an increase of 22 per cent compared to the same period last year’s Dh87 billion.

Butti claimed that the improvement in re-export activity reflects the success of the infrastructure and regulation system that Dubai managed to provide in order to meet the needs and expectations of investors and stakeholders in boosting their trade activities within the emirate.

The value of Dubai imports from international markets reached Dh268 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2010 with an increase estimated at 14 per cent compared to the same period of the last year in which imports were valued at Dh235 dirhams.

Director General said that the increase of imports also reflects the increasing purchasing power in the local markets which opens the way to many large investment opportunities in business sector in Dubai and other parts of the UAE.

India had the biggest share of non-oil trade transactions with Dubai, topping other states at a 26 per cent from the overall Dubai trade exchanges valued at Dh112 billion. Dubai imports from India, estimated to be worth Dhs51.5 billion, or 19 per cent of the total size of Dubai imports. On the other hand, exports to India were estimated to be worth Dhs21.5 billion, or 43 per cent of the total exports.

China and the USA came second and third with Dh33 billions (12 per cent) and Dh20.5 billion (eight per cebt) of Dubai's imports respectively.

As for Dubai exports, Switzerland and Saudi Arabia came second and third respectively with Dh9 billion to Switzerland and Dh2 billion to Saudi Arabia.

On the other hand, trade carried out through free zones in Dubai grew at 22 per cent during the last nine months of 2010 with a value estimated at Dh234 billion, compared to Dh192 billion last year.

Meanwhile, customs warehouse trade has grown considerably to reach Dh2.4 billion - an increase of 117 per cent compared to the same period of last year, which was estimated at Dh1.1 billion.