China tops Dubai's non-oil trade partners in first nine months of 2016

China was the primary trade partner to Dubai in the first nine months of 2016, with a bilateral trade worth 120.8 billion dirhams (32.91 billion U.S. dollars), UAE state news agency reported on Saturday.

China has been Dubai's biggest trade partner since 2014, it added.

Dubai's total non-oil foreign trade reached 259.40 billion dollars in the first nine months of 2016. The volume represents a 1.45 percent decline over the corresponding period last year.

China left its footprint in the bilateral exchange of consumer electronics. Smart and mobile phoning devices topped the list of high-value commodities in Dubai's foreign trade in the first nine months of this year with 33.78 billion dollars worth of trade, said Dubai Customs.

Major smartphone producers from China like Huawei or Xiaomi run significant presences in the Gulf Arab emirate and use its free zones as regional hubs. China's Tecno Mobile expanded outside its market in Africa when it launched its new smartphone series Phantom 6 and 6 Plus in Dubai in September 2016.

"To offset the impact of the general slowdown in world economy, lower commodity prices and the slump in oil prices, Dubai has wisely restructured and broadened its sources of revenue while taking considerable measures to stimulate growth in the affected sectors," said Chairman and CEO of global maritime port operator Chairman of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem.

Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director of Dubai Customs, said that Dubai Customs was the first to introduce many advanced systems and programs in support of Dubai's efforts to host Dubai Expo 2020.

The Gulf state UAE now has 4,200 Chinese firms, 249 trade agencies and 5,451 Chinese trade brands, according to China Foreign Trade Center. Endit