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CEO DP World-UAE Region Abdullah Bin Damithan calls Dubai gateway for Chinese exporters
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Opportunities for Chinese companies in the MENA region discussed at Webinar hosted jointly with Chinese Business Council
Dubai Ports World, UAE Region, has said it will support and partner with Chinese companies to boost trade between the UAE and China.
The smart trade enabler hosted a webinar in partnership with the Chinese Business Council in the UAE to discuss business opportunities for Chinese companies in the MENA region under the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI).
In his opening speech, Abdulla Bin Damithan, CEO & Managing Director, DP World – UAE Region and Jafza, highlighted how Dubai is a gateway for Chinese exporters, allowing access to four billion customers.
Li Xuhang, Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Dubai, spoke on bilateral strategic relations, while Zhenwei He, secretary-general of China Overseas Development Association highlighted the China-UAE economic and trade outlook.
To further their goal of augmenting UAE-China trade, DP World in partnership with Zhejiang China Commodity City Group (CCC) recently launched the Yiwu Market as part of the first phase of Dubai Traders Market.
Yiwu Market is located in the heart of Jafza. The Dubai Traders Market will span approximately 800,000 square meters, with Yiwu Market covering about 200,000 square meters. The market will give traders and businesses from across the globe access to wholesale discounts with minimized supply chain costs and turnaround times by leveraging DP World’s logistical expertise.
As one of the biggest trade partners of the UAE, China’s non-oil trade in 2019, valued at over US$49 billion, while imports stood at 15 percent of total UAE imports of non-oil trade, valued at US$33 billion.
Contributing to this burgeoning growth in the UAE, DP World, UAE Region’s Jebel Ali hub in Dubai, consisting of Jebel Ali Port and Jafza creates the most strategic multimodal trade hub of the region.
For over 40 years, Jebel Ali Port has been the premier trading port for the Gulf economies to the international trade routes with exceptional efficiency. Jafza accounts for almost 24 percent of total foreign direct investment (FDI) flow into the country and contributes 23.8 percent of Dubai’s gross domestic product (GDP) with over 8,000 companies.
Bin Damithan said that bilateral trade between the UAE and China has surged over the years due to factors like strong trade relations and people-to-people synergies. Considering these factors, he said, the UAE is a strategic partner of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that brings in a whopping 34 percent of the global GDP.
The UAE’s geographical location and dynamic market have captured the attention of the Chinese business community. This has given the country a vital status in the BRI, which attempts to link China by both sea and land to markets in Asia and Europe.
Li Xuhang said China will uphold the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits so that the BRI will better benefit the people of all countries and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
With China as the key contributor to the success of Jebel Ali, the hub consists of companies from sectors like oil and gas, metal, steel and construction, electronics and electrical goods, machinery and equipment, auto and eCommerce among others. China is not only the top country by trade value at Jafza, but it is also the 4th in terms of trade volume.