SHARJAH, 8 September 2005 — The UAE economy grew by over 17 percent in 2004, and the emirate of Dubai contributed nearly 30 percent of the gross domestic product of the country, according to figures released by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI). Dubai’s GDP grew by over 13 percent during the year.
In 2004, oil represented 32.5 percent of the UAE’s real GDP, compared with only 6.1 percent of Dubai’s real GDP which was around eight percent in 2001.
Dubai’s total real GDP stood at 111 billion dirhams in 2004 compared with 98 billion dirhams in 2003, recording a growth of 13.3 percent. The trade and repairing services sector had the largest share of Dubai’s economy in 2004 (20 percent). This sector is important to Dubai’s economy as it recorded an increase of 110 percent during the period 2001-2004. Manufacturing accounted for 14.6 percent — 49.5 billion dirhams. Transport, storage and communication sector was ranked third in terms of contribution to Dubai’s real GDP (13.7 percent). This sector’s GDP increased by 49 percent during the last four years on annual growth rate of 14.2 percent. The sector represented 56 percent of the UAE’s transport, storage and communications sector in 2004.
The fourth and fifth places were taken by both the construction and real estate sectors (12.2 percent and 10.6 percent, respectively). There is a direct relationship between the real estate sector and the construction sector as the booming of the real estate sector influences the construction sector strongly.
The construction sector in Dubai has grown at an annual average growth rate of 37.4 percent during the period 2001-2004, reflecting the construction boom being witnessed in the Emirate. The sector represented 47 percent of the UAE construction sector in 2004, up from 29.7 percent in 2001.
Dubai’s real estate sector achieved 86 percent increase during the period 2001-2004 and an annual growth rate of 16.7 percent.
The sector witnessed a boom during the recent years and it is expected to continue in the same trend in the short and medium run. The value of the planned projects to be executed in the coming five years is estimated at more than $30 billion.
The sector’s real GDP represented 39.7 percent of UAE real estate sector GDP in 2004. The financial sector came in the last place representing 9.5 percent of total Dubai real GDP in 2004.