DUBAI: The UAE’s non-oil economy grew 3.6 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter, compared to a revised 3.8 per cent in the first quarter, which was the fastest rate since the beginning of 2016, according to a report released by the bank on Wednesday.
“Growth remained resilient in the second quarter of 2018, against the backdrop of firming oil prices, supportive fiscal policy and resilient tourism and related activities,” the central bank said.
Oil production shrank 1.7 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter because of output reductions agreed by oil producers globally.
The Central bank has cut its forecast for economic growth this year. It now expects the UAE’s inflation-adjusted gross domestic product to expand 2.3 per cent in 2018, instead of the 2.7 per cent that it had projected in its last report three months ago.
The central bank now expects the non-oil economy to grow 3.6 per cent in the whole of 2018 while oil GDP shrinks 0.5 per cent due to the output agreement.
One factor weighing on the UAE economy has been a slump in real estate markets. In the second quarter, Dubai property prices fell 5.8 per cent from a year earlier and 1.7 per cent quarter-on-quarter, the central bank said. Abu Dhabi prices slipped 6.9 per cent year-on-year.
