Saturday, Dec 03, 2016

Dubai: Key sectors of the UAE economy such as trade, tourism, hospitality and manufacturing sectors continue to remain resilient to global and regional economic headwinds according to the UAE Ministry of Economy.

The UAE is considered a regional and global hug of trade and an influential and important pillar of regional and international import export and re-export activities.

“The country’s foreign non-oil trade volume in 2015 stood at about Dh1.75 trillion, up by 10 per cent from 2014. The growth rate was notable in light of oil price weakness and global economic slowdown,” said Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy.

The Ministry has made extensive efforts to support and upgrade the country’s leading commercial standing. The thriving foreign trade sector contributes significantly to the economy, particularly in the fields of innovation and entrepreneurship as well as in the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

As a result of the UAE’s stronger ties worldwide, 13 foreign events including nine official visits and four trade shows benefiting 439 people took place in the country. On the sidelines of these events, 11 forums and 150 business meetings were held, in addition to bilateral talks between the UAE and various countries

The Minister of Economy said that the government’s economic policies give utmost importance to the industrial sector due to its vital role in the state’s economic development and diversification policy.

“The investment volume in the transformative industries sector reached Dh130 billion by the end of September of this year compared to more than Dh127.6 billion in 2015. The figures were based on the Ministry of Economy’s industrial licenses e-system. The sector’s contribution to the national GDP amounted to nearly 16 per cent at fixed prices,” the Minister said.

The UAE’s industrial sector has performed positively despite the economic challenges. As of the end of September 2016, the growing number of industrial facilities totalled 6,250, including 158 factories licensed until the end of the third quarter.

Food and beverages led the other industrial sectors in terms of size of investment at Dh40 billion, representing 30 per cent of the total. Basic metals ranked second at Dh32 billion or 25 per cent, followed by non-metallic raw minerals at third place at 15 per cent or Dh19 billion of investments. As of the third quarter of 2016 the Ministry had issued around 316,000 certificates of origin for various export products, of which about 276,000 were for locally made products.

By Babu Das Augustine Banking Editor

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