India becomes number two exporter to UAE

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Dubai, May 21: : India has become the second largest exporter to the UAE for the first time and is rapidly narrowing the gap with China, the largest exporter to the Gulf country, at the current growth.

The rate at which India's export to the UAE is growing, figures showed that it could be a serious threat to Beijing's bid to maintain top position.

Official figures showed China was the top exporter to the UAE in 2007, while India became the second largest supplier of goods to the Gulf country for the first time after its exports to the UAE rocketed by nearly seven times in five years.

From only Dh 9.2 billion in 2002, the UAE's imports from India shot up to around Dh 67 billion in 2007, Emirates Industrial Bank (EIB) UAE said in a report.

India's exports last year accounted for nearly 16 per cent of the UAE's total imports of around Dh 418.7 billion.

"It was the first time that India reached the second position in the list of international exporters to the UAE," it said.

"India's exports have steadily and rapidly grown over the past years. There are several factors for this increase, mainly the decline in dirham against other currencies, mainly the UK pound and euro and because of the sharp fall in the US dollar, to which the dirham is pegged.

"This made imports from other countries, mainly Asian, more competitive," it said.

The report said another reason was that the EU has been reluctant to sign a free trade pact with the UAE and other Gulf Cooperation Council members.