binsal abdulkader
ABU DHABI, Sept 7, 2022 (WAM) — Bilateral trade between Israel and the UAE grew 117% in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period last year, Israel’s top diplomat said, according to the Emirates news agency (WAM). ). The UAE is projected to become Israel’s top 10 trading partner in the next two to three years.
Ambassador of Israel to the United Arab Emirates, Amir Hayek, said the innovative infrastructure and business imperatives provided by the Emirates have made the United Arab Emirates an important growth engine for Israeli industry. said it could be.
Bilateral trade worth $560 million [AED 2.06 billion] surge to US$1,214 million in the first six months of 2021 [AED 4.46 billion] In an exclusive interview with WAM at the Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi to mark the second anniversary of the Abraham Accords signed in September 2020, he revealed a 117% increase in the first half of 2022. United Arab Emirates.
2022 7-Month Trading Exceeds 2021 Figures
Bilateral trade, which reached $1.47 billion in the first seven months of 2022, has already exceeded $1.221 billion for the entirety of 2021, the ambassador said.
“So it is a huge number. The UAE ranks 19th among countries where Israel does business. By the end of the year, the UAE ranks between 15 and 16, I believe that will happen next year.” In two to three years, the UAE will be among the top 10 countries with which Israel trades,” the diplomat predicted, adding, “Which one is more beautiful?”
UAE-Israel non-oil trade from September 2020 to March 2022 will exceed US$2.5 billion, reaching US$1.06 billion in the first three months of 2022, according to the UAE Ministry of Economy Did. This is five times the total for the same period. 2021 years.
5 Factors Making the UAE a Growth Engine for Israeli Industry
“I tell my Israeli friends that the UAE can be an important growth engine for Israel’s economy and industry. There are five reasons,” Hayek pointed out.
“The first is that the UAE has an innovation infrastructure that fits our innovation infrastructure, and it could be 1 plus 1 to 11. [1+1=11]Secondly, they can find all kinds of capital here. If you’re looking for a partner, you may not be looking for a partner, but if you’re looking for a partner, this is the place to find one. If you have a good company, you can find the right partner and the right investment here,” he explained.
Third, the Ambassador pointed out that businesses can find all kinds of people here, from carpenters to mechanical engineers to software engineers. “And if you can’t find it here, it’s easy to bring it here.”
A fourth reason is the availability of raw materials. The UAE is a world trade center that offers materials at fair prices, the ambassador said.
The fifth factor is access to new markets. “These five elements combined can only be found here. Therefore, I believe that the UAE will become a growth engine for the Israeli economy, Israeli industry, and bilateral relations,” Hayek stressed.
CEPA with UAE – Israel’s fastest negotiations
The Ambassador said the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) was signed with the UAE on May 31, 2022. This was “the fastest negotiation Israel ever made” regarding a similar free trade agreement with another country. “Because we had a great partner on the Emirati side.”
CEPA will go into effect in the next few months. “But as you know, the economy is a matter of expectations. So when business people see and hear about CEPA, they understand that there is a solid foundation of agreements that can underpin their efforts for economic cooperation. So I would like to cooperate.”
According to the UAE Ministry of Economy, the UAE-Israel CEPA will facilitate more than US$10 billion in bilateral trade within five years, adding US$1.9 billion to the UAE’s GDP in the same period. is expected to add Total UAE exports are expected to increase by 0.5% by 2030.
