UAE's non-oil foreign trade reached Dh1.2 trillion ($326.71 billion) during the first nine months of 2018, even as re-exports achieved a remarkable 5 per cent growth, said a report.

The figures reveal the competitive advantage of the re-export activity in UAE, and its global standing in this field, according to preliminary statistical data of the Federal Customs Authority (FCA).

The authority pointed out that the non-oil direct foreign trade accounted for 62 per cent of total non-oil foreign trade amounting to Dh726.4 billion ($197.7 billion), while non-oil foreign trade of the state`s free zones accounted for 37 per cent of the total value of Dh439.2 billion ($119.5 billion), followed by customs warehouses with 2 per cent equivalent to Dh8.4 billion ($2.28 billion), reported Emirates news agency Wam.

Commenting on the UAE's non-oil foreign trade, Ali Saeed Al Neyadi, customs commissioner and head of the authority, said that the country's non-oil foreign trade continues to grow and stabilise despite the slowdown witnessed by many international markets in light of the decline in oil prices and limited growth rates in the major economies.

The authority stated that the value of non-oil imports amounted to Dh697.2 billion ($189.82 billion), noting that the imports of native and semi-proceed gold came at the forefront with Dh83.4 billion ($22.71 billion) equivalent to 12 per cent of the total value of state's imports during the said period.

Telephone equipment ranked second with Dh54.1 billion ($14.73 billion) representing 8 per cent, followed by cars imports of Dh42.3 billion ($11.52 billion) value at 6 per cent, gold ornaments and jewellery by Dh38 billion ($10.35 billion) equivalent to 5.5 per cent, followed by petroleum oils by Dh36.4 billion ($9.91 billion) representing 5.2 per cent of the country's total imports.

The value of UAE exports reached Dh134.7 billion ($36.67 billion), where gold exports was at the forefront with a value of Dh30.2 billion ($8.22 billion), representing 22 per cent of the total UAE exports during that period, followed by raw aluminium at Dh13 billion ($3.54 billion) value (10 per cent), followed by cigarettes at Dh8.6 billion ($2.34 billion) (6.4 percent), gold ornaments and jewellery Dh8 billion ($2.18 billion) value (6 per cent), and ethylene polymers with all its forms (6.2 per cent) with a 5 per cent of the total exports value.

The value of re-exports during the mentioned period amounted to Dh342.2 billion ($93.17 billion) compared to Dh325.2 billion ($88.54 billion) of the previous year period achieving a growth rate of 5 per cent.

According to the authority's preliminary statistical data, telephone equipment ranked first as the top commodity to be re-exported from the UAE in the first nine months of 2018 at Dh63.6 billion ($17.32 billion) (19 per cent) of total re-exports, followed by non-compounded diamonds valued at Dh37.5 billion ($10.21 billion) with a contribution of 11 per cent, gold ornaments and jewellery Dh34 billion ($9.26 billion) (10 per cent), cars with Dh27.3 billion ($7.43 billion) (8 per cent), air vehicle parts Dh12.7 billion ($3.46 billion) (4 per cent) of total re-exports during that period.

Al Neyadi said that the UAE has maintained stable trade relations with all regions and strategic trading partners over the past years as economic growth continues in all sectors, which resulted in the continuing of the structure of trading partners during the first nine months of 2018 to be the same as in the past few years, with almost the same commercial proportions, reflecting the strength of trade relations with the world and its ability to meet global trade challenges.