Current oil price fluctuations may increase the costs of maritime trade in the short term, while piracy is another concern for the shipping industry, the UAE's Economy Minister Sultan bin Saeed al-Mansouri said on Monday.

'The oil price fluctuation...in the short term is not positive and will impact the maritime trade,' Mansouri told a trade conference in the UAE capital.

He also said Abu Dhabi's new Khalifa Port would become operational in the fourth quarter of 2012.-Reuters