São Paulo – Non-oil exports from the United Arab Emirates were up 40% in the first half of 2012 from the same period in 2011. According to information from the country’s Federal Customs Authority, from January to June, US$ 20.96 billion worth of products were exported. In the same period of last year, exports amounted to US$ 14.98 billion.
Imports were also up, though at a lower rate at 12%, and reached US$ 87.5 billion from January to June this year. In 2011, sales stood at US$ 78 billion during the period. In a press statement, the customs authority informed that exports and imports grew because the Emirati government adopted stimulus measures targeting exports and investment.
According to the report released this Wednesday by the authority, the top export product was gold. In the first six months of the year, US$ 11.2 billion worth of gold were shipped. The customs authority also informed that re-exports from the Emirates stood at US$ 27.3 billion in the first half of this year. The Emirates are a commercial hub in the Gulf. Many of the products it imports are later exported to other local countries.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
