SINO-UAE BONDS KEEP GROWING

Diplomatic relations between China and the UAE were established in 1984. Since then, the two countries have built strong and deepening ties.

China has been Dubai’s biggest trading partner since 2014 and the second-largest trading partner of the UAE as a whole since 2011.

Trade between the two countries was US$45 billion (Dh165bn) last year and Chinese companies have been turning their attention towards secure countries in the Middle East such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia in recent years.

Tourism has also sharply grown between the UAE and China. In 2015, Dubai welcomed 450,000 Chinese tourists, an increase of 29 per cent on the previous year, and 600,000 last year.

“We have more tourists today in Abu Dhabi than [in the past],” said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority. “Last year, we put 7 per cent on our visit numbers but we now have a lot more Indian and Chinese tourists.”

Thirteen Chinese cities including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzhen, as well as Hong Kong and Taipei, are connected to Dubai with more than 100 weekly flights.

UAE residents can enjoy Chinese trading culture at Dubai’s Dragon Mart Mall, the world’s largest Chinese trading hub outside China. The mall gets 120,000 visitors a day and about 1,700 of its 5,000 shops are run by Chinese retailers.