LONDON: UK exports to the UAE reached £5.24 billion ($6.9 billion) in the first eight months of 2017, an increase of 30 percent on the same period last year, according to official figures.
The UAE market accounted for 2.3 percent of the UK’s total exports over the period, the statistics released Tuesday show.
The UAE was the UK’s 11th top trading partner in August, while Saudi Arabia — the only other Gulf state in the top 25 — ranked 22nd.
The UK exported goods worth £2.73 billion to Saudi Arabia in the first eight months of 2017, marking a decline of 9.3 percent compared to the previous year.
The growth in exports to the UAE is a bright spot in an increasingly gloomy picture for UK trade, as the country grapples with an ever-widening deficit and a slump in exports to non-EU countries.
The UK’s three-month trade deficit reached £13.2 billion at the end of August, widening from £7.04 billion recorded in May, according to statistics released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Tuesday.
If erratic commodities such as gold are not included, the deficit widened to £10.8 billion.
While exports to non-EU countries decreased by 8.8 percent or £4 billion between the three months to May and the three months to August, exports to the EU increased by 4.1 percent, according to ONS data.
That will be a concern to those hoping that the UK might be able to lessen its reliance on the EU after it leaves the bloc. The fall in the value of the pound since the Brexit vote was also expected to boost the appeal of UK exports.
While the US is the UK’s biggest trading partner, accounting for 13.6 percent of exports this year to date, according to HMRC data, the majority of the country’s top 10 trading partners are within the EU.
UK exports to UAE rise amid Brexit fears
UK exports to UAE rise amid Brexit fears
RLC Global Forum 2026 opens, leading the agenda for transformation in retail industry
RIYADH: The RLC Global Forum 2026 opened in Riyadh on Feb. 3, aiming to shape the future of retail and consumer-facing industries by bringing together the most influential leaders from across the sector.
Addressing the opening session, Panos Linardos, chairman of RLC Global Forum, said: “We meet at a moment that feels fundamentally different from just a few years ago. Growth today is no longer linear. It is no longer evenly distributed. And it is no longer guaranteed.
“We find ourselves at what we call a growth crossroads, a moment where traditional models are under pressure, geopolitical dynamics are reshaping trade and investment, and leadership choices carry longer-lasting consequences.”
He added that at the 2025 event, the discussions were focused on trust and collaboration in a time of disruption.
“This year, the environment is more fragmented, more volatile, and more urgent,” he said, explaining that supply chains are shifting, consumer expectations are moving faster than organizations, and capital is more selective.
Linardos also stated that the boundaries between retail, real estate, technology, policy, and culture “are increasingly blurred.”
At a growth crossroads, progress is a shared responsibility requiring clarity, coordination, and balanced leadership, he said adding over the next two days, the forum will bring together global CEOs, retailers, and real estate leaders, as well as policymakers, academics, investors, and innovators.
“The purpose is clear: to examine how growth is being rebuilt, where it is being redefined, and what leadership looks like in this new context,” the forum chairman said.
Linardos set out details of the NextGen retail challenge, which is developed with the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University and Monsha’at.
Vice Minister of Economy and Planning Ammar Nagadi used his opening remarks to put his perspective on how economic choices translate into competitiveness and long-term value is especially timely for the discussions ahead.
The 2026 forum is exploring six defining themes that capture the transformation reshaping global trade, consumption, and leadership: Growth in a Reordered World, AI and the Power of Multipliers, Global South as Growth Engine, Experience as Growth Infrastructure, Future Consumer Order, and Leadership Beyond Resilience.
