Khaleej Times

Dubai-China trade surges 50% in 2020

- Waheed Abbas — waheedabba­s@khaleejtim­es.com

dubai — Trade between Dubai and China has grown substantia­lly in the first eight months of 2020, according to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Based on the results of its members’ exports, the chamber said China has emerged so far in 2020 as the best performing sizeable market for its member exporters; and as a result, it secured 10th position by value after climbing four ranks in less than a year.

As a result of the notable accelerati­on in activity seen in recent months, the total declared value of certificat­es of origin (COOs) targeting China during the January-August 2020 period stood at Dh2.42 billion, which translates into a 50 per cent year-on-year growth from the same period of 2019.

Dubai has emerged in recent months as a major supplier of rapeseed and colza oil to the Chinese market. While Canadian oil remains dominant, market analysts have reported in August that Chinese traders continue looking to diversify away from the main source of their imports due to the high price of Canadian oil relative to alternativ­e sources, such as Europe, Russia, and the UAE.

Moreover, persistent political tensions between China and Canada, and Covid-19 supply chain disruption­s were also cited as key drivers of

increased demand for alternativ­e suppliers. Incidental­ly, these factors have reflected positively on Dubai exporters in recent months.

The breakdown of the China-bound shipments by commodity type revealed that the majority of products were vegetable oil and plastics with a share of 28 per cent each. Sugar came third (16 per cent), followed by minerals (nine per cent) and food processing waste (seven per cent). The remaining 12 per cent of the total declared value of COOs came from paper products, chemicals, wood, and textiles, among others, the Dubai Chamber said.

Another fundamenta­l driver for the overall growth in Dubai exports to this partner has to do with the natural developmen­t of trade ties with China, which started from a relatively low baseline.

During January-August, the total number of COOs issued for Chinabound shipments reached 1,936 certificat­es, which is almost double the number issued during the same period five years ago at 1,038.

This rapid developmen­t is expected to continue in the coming years, as the current level of exports activity has not yet reached its potential.

 ??  ?? DIVERSIFYI­nG TRADE: Dubai has emerged in recent months as a major supplier of rapeseed and colza oil to the Chinese market. — File photo
DIVERSIFYI­nG TRADE: Dubai has emerged in recent months as a major supplier of rapeseed and colza oil to the Chinese market. — File photo

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