Non-oil trade between UAE, Australia up 17.4% y-on-y in 2019

Non-oil trade exchange between the UAE and Australia amounted to Dhs14.5bn in 2019, up 17.4 per cent compared to 2018, confirmed a report issued by the “Commercial Policies and International Organisations Department” of the Ministry of Economy.

Aluminium, as well as fresh and chilled meat, topped the list of commodities imported by the UAE from Australia, reported official news agency WAM.

Although Australia’s economy recorded its first quarter of negative growth in 29 years as it shrank by 0.3 per cent in Q1 2020 as a result of the coronavirus and bushfires, its economy is still among the strongest in the world.

One of the key components of the Australian economy is its services sector. It also reportedly has the eighth-highest total estimated value of natural resources, while its mining industry is also very active.

Australia’s GDP was estimated to be around $1,450bn in 2019, with trade between the UAE and Australia developing significantly from 2014 to 2019.

Overall, the UAE’s non-oil trade in 2019 grew 4.4 per cent to Dhs1.603 trillion, compared to Dhs1.536 trillion in 2018.

Read: UAE’s non-oil trade totals Dhs1.603 trillion in 2019

Exports comprised 14.4 per cent of the total trade volume, up from Dhs206bn to Dhs231.23bn whereas imports grew from around Dhs898.37bn to Dhs914.8bn.

Meanwhile, Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade in 2019 was Dhs1.371 trillion, up 6 per cent from Dhs1.299 trillion in 2018.

Read also: Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade rises 6 per cent to Dhs1.37 trillion in 2019

The volume of Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade in 2019 meanwhile also increased 19 per cent from 91 million tons in 2018 to 109 million tons last year.