DUBAI, 24 July 2004 — The total volume of trade between the UAE and the rest of the GCC countries has increased by 16 percent since the launch of the GCC customs union early last year. According to a study recently issued by the UAE Industrial Bank, the total volume of export and re-export from the UAE to the rest of the GCC countries grew by 33 percent amounting to 6.8 billion dirhams last year, a news report published here said.
For the first time, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar topped the list of GCC countries re-exporting from the UAE to the rest of the world, reflecting the importance of the unified customs tariff and its positive impact on the GCC countries.
The study has also confirmed that the high capacity UAE ports have enhanced the special hub position of the country in the regional trade, especially with the launch of the fully electronic customs clearance procedure.
The rest of the GCC countries have achieved almost similar results. The total value of Kuwaiti imports from the Gulf Cooperation Council states amounted to 390 million Kuwaiti dinars during the period from September to November last year, recording an increase of 10 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.
Export from Kuwait to the GCC countries also increased to reach 118 million Kuwaiti dinars for the same period.
The study highlights the positive impact of the GCC customs union on all member states — as witnessed by the experience of other economic communities in the world and the European Union in particular.
It said that the importance of orienting present efforts of the council states towards the completion of the customs union’s constituents through unifying the specifications and standardization of commodities and products. The study also refers to the importance of agreeing on prohibited and restricted goods, unifying the customs protection for many national products, as well as setting up a network for the automatic link between the customs centers of the GCC member countries.