UAE Foreign Trade Nears Dh3 Trillion in Nine Months, Up 10%, Sheikh Mohammed Says

In a post on X after reviewing the country's foreign trade report for the period, Sheikh Mohammed said trade was up 10 per cent on the previous year and that exports to the UAE's ten largest trading partners rose 31 per cent year on year.

"In a year that has seen many economic and political challenges and shifts in global trade, the UAE remains a major hub for international trade," he wrote, adding that the country continued to respond flexibly to the changes around it and to expand its export markets.

The figures cover a period in which the war involving Iran has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, forcing Gulf traders to reroute cargo through other ports and overland. The UAE has been expanding port capacity on its east coast, at Fujairah and Khor Fakkan, and using the Etihad Rail network to move goods.

The post did not say whether the nine-month total refers to non-oil trade, the measure the government has used in its recent headline announcements, and no breakdown by partner or category had been published. In July, Sheikh Mohammed reported non-oil foreign trade of Dh1.937 trillion for the first half of 2026, up 13.1 per cent, with non-oil exports at a record Dh452.8 billion. China, Switzerland and India were the largest partners in that period.

Earlier this week, Fahad Al Gergawi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, told the Dubai FinTech Summit that UAE trade had kept double-digit growth through the first nine months of the year. He said trade reached about $1 trillion last year, and that the country's comprehensive economic partnership agreements, starting with India, remain central to opening new markets.

The full nine-month report, including the split between exports, re-exports and imports, is expected to be released by the Ministry of Foreign Trade.