UAE's real GDP expected to grow 3.7pc in 2019
ABU DHABI, January 5, 2019
The outlook for the UAE economy is highly positive despite global headwinds with the country’s real gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow 3.7 per cent this year, reported state news agency Wam.
It is higher than the 2.9 per cent forecast for last year and the 0.8 per cent growth achieved in 2017, stated the report, citing the latest economic outlook figures from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Juma Mohammad Al Kait, the assistant under-secretary for Foreign Trade Affairs at the Ministry of Economy, said geopolitical developments are unlikely to moderate the economic growth of the UAE, a trend in line with IMF projections of strong growth in the country in 2018 and 2019.
"The positive outlook for the country’s economy has been affirmed by the advanced ranking across several global competitiveness indices" he added.
According to him, the UAE is fast closing in to become one among the top 10 in the Ease of Doing Business ranking of 190 countries by the World Bank.
"The UAE jumped 10 places in the ranking to clinch the 11th position globally in 2019 from 21st position last year to lead the Arab world for the sixth consecutive year," stated Al Kait.
The UAE jumped in the competitiveness rankings in 2018, after having made tremendous progress in the last few years.
"The country was the most competitive economy in the Middle East & North Africa region, according to the IMD World Competitiveness Center," he added.
Radhwa Radhwan, an economic expert, pointed out that the UAE economy had gone a long way in 2018 and survived several economic headwinds, generated by the current geopolitical developments, growing 2.8 per cent in 2018
This was higher than the 0.7 per cent growth achieved in 2017, she stated.
Speaking of global economic turbulences, Ali Salah, Head of Economic Studies Unit at Future for Advanced Research and Studies said Goldman Sachs economists on dialed back their view on US economic growth from 2.4 per cent to 2 per cent in 2019.
He also referred to IMF forecasts that China’s economic growth could decline to 6.1 per cent in 2019 from 6.6 per cent in 2018.
Randa Abbas, the economic lecturer at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy, said that the global economy is going through a state of volatility due to the economic policies adopted by some major economies as a result of which the IMF and WTO altered its future outlook for the global economy.
