In a first, the UAE’s foreign trade approached Dh3 trillion in the first nine months of 2026, marking a 10 per cent increase year on year, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said on Sunday, November 8.
“For the first time, our foreign trade is approaching 3 trillion dirhams in nine months, up 10 per cent from the previous year .. And our exports to our ten largest trading partners rose by 31 per cent from the previous year,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said in a post on X.
He noted that the growth came in a year marked by economic and political challenges and shifts in global trade, adding that the UAE continued to serve as a major international trade hub while responding flexibly to changing conditions.
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He added that the UAE was continuing to strengthen its international relationships, expand export markets and pursue sustainable economic growth.
Sheikh Mohammed attributed the achievement to President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as well as the country’s national teams and partners.
UAE trade records growth despite regional challenges
The latest figures follow continued growth in the UAE’s foreign trade during the first half of the year. The country’s non-oil foreign trade reached Dh1.937 trillion in the first six months of 2026, marking a 13.1 per cent increase compared with the same period last year.
On November 3, the UAE said it expected foreign trade to continue growing despite regional challenges, following the record performance in the first half of the year.
Fahad Al Gergawi, the undersecretary at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Trade, said he expects to see “more growth this year.” Despite the challenges it faced due to the regional conflict earlier this year, as well as ongoing tensions, Al Gergawi said that numbers are still in the “two-digit growth for the first nine months.”
UAE non-oil exports account for growing share of trade
In an earlier report, Khaleej Times highlighted how non-oil exports were playing an increasingly important role in the UAE’s economy.
They accounted for 23.4 per cent of total non-oil trade in the first half of 2026, up from 21.3 per cent a year earlier, 18.4 per cent in 2024 and 16.9 per cent in 2023.
The increase points to a gradual shift towards a more production and value-added-driven economic model.
Trade growth was also broad-based across the UAE’s major partners. China remained the country’s largest trading partner for non-oil trade, with exchanges worth Dh180.7 billion, followed by Switzerland at Dh138.4 billion and India at Dh107.5 billion. Egypt, Oman and Hong Kong recorded some of the strongest growth rates among key trading partners.
Source: Khaleej Times