
Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum announced on February 18, 2023, that the United Arab Emirates achieved a historic milestone in its non-oil trade, reaching around $952.93 billion (3.5 trillion dirhams) in 2023. This remarkable accomplishment underscores the nation's commitment to diversifying its economy and reducing its dependence on oil.

Thani Al Zeyoudi, the Minister of Foreign Trade, announced that trade in non-oil goods experienced a significant increase of 12.6 per cent since 2022. Additionally, exports of goods and services have exceeded 1 trillion dirhams, marking a new record.
The Gulf oil exporter signed a series of bilateral trade, investment, and cooperation agreements in 2021 called Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs). These initiatives aim to strengthen endeavours focused on diversifying revenue streams and economic sectors.
The Minister of Foreign Trade Zeyoudi informed that thus far, the disruption of Red Sea shipping routes due to Houthi attacks has not affected the UAE.
Zeyoudi said, "We think our country will not be disturbed by that. We are in a good position, and it's about how we are resilient and the system's adaptability here to face the challenges facing the world and the region."
In the initial half of 2023, the non-oil sector demonstrated remarkable performance, exhibiting a nearly 6 per cent surge, surpassing the overall GDP growth rate of 3.7 per cent.
"CEPAs are going to play a major role in our foreign trade numbers moving forward," Zeyoudi said, pointing out that UAE trade with its first CEPA partner, India, increased around 4 per cent last year. In contrast, trade with Turkey, the UAE's fastest-growing partner.
The UAE's diversifying service sectors encompass travel and tourism, information and communication technology, and financial and professional services. Its primary non-oil exports are gold, aluminium, jewellery, copper wire, and ethylene polymers.
Zeyoudi stated that the UAE experienced a notable 16.7 per cent increase in its non-oil commodity exports in the previous year, reaching 441 billion dirhams. This growth significantly boosted the contribution of non-oil exports to foreign trade, rising from 14.1 per cent in 2019 to 17.1 per cent.
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