Dubai has issued 2,599 new business licences during May 2019, a growth of 50 per cent compared to May 2018 (1,736), said a report.

The new licences created 8,348 jobs in the labour market, the Business Registration and Licensing (BRL) sector in the Department of Economic Development (DED), added the Wam report.

Among the new licences issued, 54.7 per cent were professional, 42.7 per cent commercial, 1.8 per cent related to tourism and 0.8 per cent industry, it said.

The ‘Business Map’ digital platform of DED, which seeks to reflect the economic realities in Dubai by providing vital data on each license category including their numbers and distribution on a monthly basis, saw 24,992 business registration and licensing transactions being completed during the month of May 2019, while the outsourced service centres of DED issued 17,983 transactions, a 72 per cent of total transactions, thus demonstrating their vital role in delivering value-added services to the public in Dubai.

The report showed that License Renewal accounted for 11,133 transactions during May 2019, while 5,315 transactions were related to Auto Renewal via text messages, a 48 per cent of total transactions.

During the month of May 2019, the number of Trade Name Reservation was 3,676, while the number of Initial Approvals reached 3,086.

BRL also issued 187 instant licences, which is issued in a single step without the need for either the Memorandum of Association (MoA) or an existing location for the first year only, while the number of DED Trader licences during May 2019 reached 144 licences.

The report also showed that the top nationalities who secured licences in May 2019 included citizens of Bangladesh followed by India, Pakistan, Egypt, Britain, China, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Philippines, and Lebanon.

Bur Dubai accounted for the largest share, followed by Deira and Hatta.

In terms of the economic activities of the new licences real estate, leasing and business services accounted for the largest share, followed by trade and repair, community and personal services, added the report.