UAE's Non-Oil Trade Surpasses $1 Trillion for the First Time

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the UAE, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, announced a significant economic milestone as the UAE's non-oil foreign trade has exceeded the $1 trillion mark for the first time in the nation's history. He emphasized that the investment environment is robust, and global confidence in the UAE economy has strengthened.

Record Figures Ahead of Target Date

According to the UAE news agency "WAM," Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid stated that the volume of non-oil trade has reached approximately 3.8 trillion dirhams ($1.03 trillion), reflecting a growth of 26.8% compared to the previous year. Non-oil exports reached 813.8 billion dirhams, demonstrating an impressive growth rate of 45.5%. He noted that these results align with the UAE Vision 2031 goals, achieving 95% of the targets five years ahead of schedule, showcasing the economy's resilience and accelerated growth rate.

Official Statements

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid said:
"Our investment environment is complete, our international partnerships have doubled, our collaboration with the private sector has intensified, and global confidence in the UAE is solidified."
He added: "We congratulate our national teams, and our message to them is to double their efforts and strengthen partnerships with the private sector to build a better economic future."

Steady Growth Over the Years

In 2025, non-oil trade recorded a growth of 27% compared to 2024 and 44.3% compared to 2023, approaching double the levels of 2021 and significantly exceeding 2019 figures.

Exports Drive Growth

By the end of 2025, the share of non-oil exports reached 21.6% of total non-oil trade, marking the highest proportion in the country's history. Exports also surpassed the targets of the Vision "We Are the UAE 2031" by over 13.8 billion dirhams and continued their upward trend, exceeding three times the levels of 2019.

Strategic Partners and Key Goods

The UAE's exports to partner countries in comprehensive economic partnership agreements (14 countries) amounted to approximately 175.5 billion dirhams, with an 18.2% growth, constituting 21.6% of total exports. The leading exported goods include:
gold and jewelry, aluminum, cigarettes, refined petroleum, ethylene polymers, copper wires, perfumes, and plastic products, which collectively recorded a growth of 64.5%.

Re-Exports and Imports

By the end of 2025, re-exports reached approximately 830.2 billion dirhams, growing by 15.7%, while non-oil imports surpassed 2.1 trillion dirhams, driven by rising imports of gold, mobile phones, cars, diamonds, and computers.

Exceptional Last Quarter

In the last quarter of 2025, the non-oil trade achieved unprecedented performance, exceeding one trillion dirhams in just three months, with a growth of 33.1%, while non-oil exports reached 234.4 billion dirhams, equivalent to the total value of exports in 2019.