Dubai’s Khaleej Times reporting on discussions held (30 May) between UAE’s Minister of Foreign Trade Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi and US Assistant Secretary of Commerce Suresh Kumar said that the United States saw the UAE as a, “Gateway to regional and international markets.”
Importance of UAE to American Exporters
Kumar, acknowledging the importance of the UAE market to American exporters said, “US companies are increasingly finding that the UAE, not Paris or London, is the ideal location for their regional headquarters.”
National Export Initiative
The proposed doubling of exports comes as part of the National Export Initiative (NEI), a package of new measures designed to boost US exports, recently launched by the Obama administration.
Recognizing that America needs to export more of its goods abroad, Obama said, “We will double our exports [worldwide] over the next five years, an increase that will support two million jobs in America.”
To sustain these ambitious plans, the NEI will support American companies to capture some of this new export business. The White House Blog says, “The NEI includes the creation of the President’s Export Promotion Cabinet and an enhancement of funding for the key export promotion programs.”
The UAE, a federation of seven states: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al Qaiwain is one of the world’s most influential economic regions and seen as key to the expansion of the US economy.
The UAE has reduced its early total reliance on oil and gas exports and has successfully diversified although much more requires to be done. Like much of the world it suffered during the recent banking crisis prompting fears that Dubai would not meet it’s outstanding financial liabilities. To counter this, a $20 billion bond program (Feb 2009) was launched to ensure debt obligations were met.
There are around 750 US companies currently operating in the UAE so it’s already seen as a particularly attractive place for American companies to do business. It has a Trade and Investment Framework agreement with the US in place, although not yet a Free Trade Agreement. However the UAE has a number of Free Trade Zones, which allow full foreign ownership and a zero tax rate.
Some of the Main Sectors for American Export and Investment to UAE are:
- Aircraft and parts
- Oil and gas-field machinery services
- Pollution control equipment
- Medical equipment
- Safety and security equipment
- Agriculture
- Building products
US Trade With the United Arab Emirates for the First Quarter of 2010
Exports: 2,731.0 Imports: 263.2 Balance: 2467.7
Statistics, supplied by the US Census Bureau, are in millions of US dollars on a nominal basis, not seasonally adjusted.
Sources:
Office of the United States Trade Representative, President Obama Lays Out Export Initiative to Create Jobs, 1/28/2010
CIA World Factbook, United Arab Emirates, website accessed 6/1/2010
US Commercial Service, Department of Commerce, Doing Business in the United Arab Emirates, website accessed 6/1/2010
Join the Conversation