Dubai: India is expected to be the UAE’s top export and import market by 2030, according to the latest HSBC Trade Forecast released on Tuesday.
Alongside India, the UAE’s fastest growing export markets will be China, Malaysia and Turkey, each of which will have the fastest growth rates between 2017 and 2030.
Asia and Turkey will continue to be the most important trade partners in terms of imports. Import growth will be fastest for goods originating from China, India, Turkey and Vietnam.
“Sectors such as infrastructure and construction, tourism, retail and government investments in technology will continue to be the main drivers of the UAE’s economy going forward. With that said, we still expect petroleum products to remain both the largest category of total exports and the largest contributor to total export growth up to 2030. It will account for over 40 per cent of total export growth over this forecast horizon,” stated Tim Evans, HSBC’s Regional Head of Global Trade and Receivables Finance.
UAE importers will continue to focus on Asia and intra-regional trade, he said.
The country is positive about increasing trade activity over the next six months. The country ranked third out of 23 countries, according to Trade Confidence Index, a survey of importers and traders rom the small and medium enterprises (SME) segment and part of the HSBC Trade Forecast report.
Almost half of the survey’s respondents (47 per cent) believe trading volumes will increase slightly over the next six months, while 16 per cent said the increase will be significant.
“We are already seeing this trend in the short term as the Trade Confidence Index reveals that 65 per cent of businesses surveyed reported current trade activity with these regions while 75 per cent believe that Asia or Mena [Middle East and North Africa] will have the best opportunities of growth over the next six months,” Evans stated.
