UAE, Germany hold 12th Joint Economic Committee to strengthen trade, investment partnership

Munich: Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, and Katherina Reiche, German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, co-chaired the 12th session of the UAE-Germany Joint Economic Committee (JEC) in Munich. The session was held in conjunction with the official state visit to the Federal Republic of Germany by President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The two sides reviewed the state of bilateral economic relations and agreed on a set of practical measures to deepen cooperation across priority sectors, including energy and renewable energy, advanced technology and artificial intelligence, industry and manufacturing, logistics and transportation, healthcare and life sciences, financial services, education and scientific research, agriculture and food security, and infrastructure and utilities. The session was preceded by a bilateral meeting between Al Zeyoudi and Reiche, during which the two sides reviewed the trajectory of bilateral economic relations and progress made since the previous JEC session, and discussed opportunities to expand partnerships in the fields of energy, innovation, and advanced technology. At the conclusion of the session, Al Zeyoudi and Reiche signed the Agreed Minutes of the 12th JEC, setting out a comprehensive programme of bilateral economic cooperation for the period ahead. The two sides agreed to intensify government-to-government engagement, facilitate trade and investment flows, improve market access, and create new opportunities for companies in both countries. The two sides exchanged views on current economic developments in their respective countries and on regional and multilateral developments. Both sides acknowledged that the global economy is facing challenges and uncertainty, and agreed on the importance of exploring new avenues to promote closer economic cooperation, advance multilateral trade, and remove existing barriers to trade in accordance with the rules and frameworks that govern it. The two sides highlighted the strong commercial presence of German companies in the UAE, with 7,685 German companies operating in the UAE as of the end of May 2026, and 20,842 German trademarks registered as of the beginning of June 2026. They underscored the role of existing bilateral platforms, including the German-Emirati Joint Council for Industry and Trade and the UAE-German Business Council, in strengthening ties between the business communities of both countries. They also discussed efforts to attract commercial investment, including encouraging German companies to establish a presence in the UAE and take advantage of the country's advanced economic environment as a global hub for trade and re-exports, and agreed to enhance opportunities for cooperation and partnership between the private sectors of both nations. Both sides further acknowledged the importance of bilateral partnerships in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and promoting entrepreneurship. Al Zeyoudi said, "The 12th session of the Joint Economic Committee is an important milestone in building on the solid strategic relationship between the UAE and Germany, and transforming promising opportunities into concrete partnerships and projects that deliver sustainable growth for both nations. Germany is the UAE's second-largest trading partner within the European Union, accounting for around 20% of the country's total non-oil trade with the EU, and a key partner in our efforts to build a more diversified, competitive, and knowledge-based economy. "The continued positive momentum of this relationship underpins the strength of our economic partnership. We look forward to translating the outcomes of this session into practical initiatives that facilitate trade and investment, and enable our business communities to forge high-quality partnerships in the sectors of the future for the benefit of both countries and in support of sustainable, long-term growth." Non-oil trade between the UAE and Germany reached approximately US$15.6 billion in 2025, reflecting growth of 14.7% compared to 2024 and 19.1% compared to 2023. Germany is the UAE's second-largest trading partner within the European Union and its primary economic partner in the Arab world, accounting for 20% of the UAE's total non-oil foreign trade with the EU. The UAE's non-oil foreign trade exceeded US$1 trillion (AED3.8 trillion) for the first time in 2025, reflecting growth of 27% year-on-year, while non-oil exports surpassed AED 813 billion with growth of 45.5%. In the first half of 2026, the UAE's non-oil foreign trade reached a record AED1.937 trillion, with growth of 13.1% year-on-year. The CEPA programme is a key pillar of the UAE's foreign trade agenda, which aims to increase non-oil foreign trade to US$1.1 trillion (AED4 trillion) by 2031. Since its launch in September 2021, 38 agreements have been concluded with economies across Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania, with 18 in force. The p