Arab trade in goods, services surges to $3.5 trn in 2022

Arab trade in goods and services witnessed a significant growth of 32.4 percent, reaching $3.5 trillion in 2022. This is according to the Arab Investment & Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (DHAMAN). 

In a statement, the Kuwait-based Foundation reported that Arab exports of goods and services surged by 44 percent to exceed $2 trillion in 2022. Additionally, imports rose by 20 percent to reach approximately $1.5 trillion.

According to the Corporation’s Director- General Abduallah Al-Sabeeh, Arab commodity trade experienced a notable increase of 32.6 percent, reaching $2.9 trillion. Commodity exports also saw a growth of 43 percent, amounting to $1.7 trillion. Import figures rose by 20 percent, totaling $1.1 trillion, as reported by the Arab News Agency (ANA).

The merchandise trade balance achieved a surplus of $558 billion.

Read more: A new $40 mn worth logistics complex coming to Riyadh’s Industrial Gate City

Dominant share

The proportion of Arab commodity trade in the global total increased in 2022 to approximately 5.7 percent. Raw materials, encompassing various types, claimed the largest share of Arab exports, accounting for over 75 percent. Fuel exports, in particular, constituted nearly 62 percent of the overall merchandise exports.

Furthermore, he noted that five oil-producing countries, namely the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar, and Kuwait, collectively accounted for approximately 81 percent of all exports.

Moreover, the Corporation revealed that the intra-Arab commodity trade witnessed a significant growth of 43.5 percent, reaching $508.2 billion in 2022. This accounted for approximately 17.8 percent of the total Arab commodity trade.

$200 billion

In July 2023, DHAMAN said that foreign direct investment (FDI) projects coming to the region during 2022 increased by 74 percent to 1,617 projects, with 358 percent investment cost worth $200 billion. 

Furthermore, the corporation said these projects were concentrated in Egypt with a 53 percent share of the investment cost, and the UAE with a 57 percent share. 

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