Economy - overview:
The UAE has an open economy with a high per capita income and a sizable annual trade surplus. Successful efforts at economic diversification have reduced the portion of GDP based on oil and gas output to 25%. Since the discovery of oil in the UAE more than 30 years ago, the UAE has undergone a profound transformation from an impoverished region of small desert principalities to a modern state with a high standard of living. The government has increased spending on job creation and infrastructure expansion and is opening up utilities to greater private sector involvement. In April 2004, the UAE signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement with Washington and in November 2004 agreed to undertake negotiations toward a Free Trade Agreement with the US, however, those talks have not moved forward. The country's Free Trade Zones - offering 100% foreign ownership and zero taxes - are helping to attract foreign investors. The global financial crisis, tight international credit, and deflated asset prices constricted the economy in 2009 and 2010. UAE authorities tried to blunt the crisis by increasing spending and boosting liquidity in the banking sector. The crisis hit Dubai hardest, as it was heavily exposed to depressed real estate prices. Dubai lacked sufficient cash to meet its debt obligations, prompting global concern about its solvency. The UAE Central Bank and Abu Dhabi-based banks bought the largest shares. In December 2009 Dubai received an additional $10 billion loan from the emirate of Abu Dhabi. The economy is expected to continue a slow rebound. Dependence on oil, a large expatriate workforce, and growing inflation pressures are significant long-term challenges. The UAE's strategic plan for the next few years focuses on diversification and creating more opportunities for nationals through improved education and increased private sector employment.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (official exchange rate): GDP - real growth rate: GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - composition by sector: Labor force: Labor force - by occupation: Unemployment rate: Population below poverty line: Household income or consumption by percentage share: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: Taxes and other revenues: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-): Public debt: Inflation rate (consumer prices): Central bank discount rate: Commercial bank prime lending rate: Stock of narrow money: Stock of broad money: Stock of domestic credit: Market value of publicly traded shares: Agriculture - products: Industries: Industrial production growth rate: Electricity - production: Electricity - consumption: Electricity - exports: Electricity - imports: Oil - production: Oil - consumption: Oil - exports: Oil - imports: Natural gas - production: Natural gas - consumption: Natural gas - exports: Natural gas - imports: Natural gas - proved reserves: Current account balance: Exports: Exports - commodities: Exports - partners: Imports: Imports - commodities: Imports - partners: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Debt - external: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: Exchange rates:
NOTE: 1) The information regarding United Arab Emirates on this page is re-published from the 2012 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of United Arab Emirates Economy 2012 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about United Arab Emirates Economy 2012 should be addressed to the CIA.
$260.8 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 50
note: data are in 2011 US dollars
[see also: GDP country ranks ]
$358.1 billion (2011 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
3.3% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 118
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$48,500 (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 10
note: data are in 2011 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 0.7%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 59.4%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services: 39.8% (2011 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
4.111 million
country comparison to the world: 88
note: expatriates account for about 85% of the work force (2011 est.)
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 7%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 15%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services: 78% (2000 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
2.4% (2001)
country comparison to the world: 20
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
19.5% (2003)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: NA%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%: NA%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
20.5% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 112
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $120.8 billion
[see also: Budget revenues country ranks ]
expenditures: $102.9 billion (2011 est.)
[see also: Budget expenditures country ranks ]
33.7% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 72
[see also: Taxes and other revenues country ranks ]
5% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) country ranks ]
43.9% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 68
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
2.5% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
NA%
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
5.1% (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 160
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$71.23 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$234 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$295 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$104.7 billion (31 December 2010)
country comparison to the world: 37
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
dates, vegetables, watermelons; poultry, eggs, dairy products; fish
petroleum and petrochemicals; fishing, aluminum, cement, fertilizers, commercial ship repair, construction materials, some boat building, handicrafts, textiles
3.2% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
80.94 billion kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
70.58 billion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
0 kWh (2009 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
0 kWh (2009 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
2.813 million bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
545,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
2.395 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
235,300 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
48.84 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
59.08 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
7.01 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
17.25 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
6.453 trillion cu m (1 January 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
$38.45 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$265.3 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 23
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
crude oil 45%, natural gas, reexports, dried fish, dates
Japan 17.1%, India 13.6%, Iran 6.9%, South Korea 6.1%, Thailand 5.1% (2010)
$185.6 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 27
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food
India 17.5%, China 14%, US 7.7%, Germany 5.6%, Japan 4.8% (2010)
$55.29 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 30
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$167.2 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
$81.33 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 44
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
$57.93 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
Emirati dirhams (AED) per US dollar -
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may habe the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assignes counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order
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This page was last modified 07-Mar-12