Dubai Chambers exports pass $77bn as 67,200 new companies register

Dubai Chambers and the three chambers operating under its umbrella (Dubai Chamber of Commerce, Dubai International Chamber and Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy) have continued to make significant progress towards achieving their strategic priorities and unveiled an impressive set of results from 2023 that align closely with the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33).

The chambers’ strategic priorities focus on enhancing the emirate’s favourable business environment, attracting foreign investments and international companies to the emirate, assisting member companies to expand abroad, and accelerating the growth of the digital economy.

Dubai Chambers 2023 growth

Dubai Chambers has revealed that 67,222 new companies joined as members of the Chamber of Commerce in 2023.

This impressive figure is the highest number of new members during any year in the chamber’s history and represents year-on-year (YoY) growth of 20 per cent.

The number of active members of the Chamber of Commerce also grew by 26.8 per cent compared to 2022 to reach a total of 217,788, while the value of members’ exports and re-exports increased to more than AED284bn ($77.3bn), with YoY growth of 4.3 per cent.

The International Chamber successfully attracted 138 overseas businesses to the emirate.

These included 34 multinational companies (MNCs), an increase of 580 per cent compared to 2022, and 104 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), representing YoY growth of 550 per cent.

The chamber also supported the international expansion of 77 local companies, achieving a record annual growth rate of 756 per cent, and increased its network of international representative offices to 31 with the launch of 16 new offices around the world in 2023.

Meanwhile, the Chamber of Digital Economy continued to strengthen the emirate’s digital leadership by attracting nine MNCs operating in the digital industries to the emirate, together with 549 high-tech startups to achieve an annual growth rate of 916 per cent.

The chamber also successfully hosted Expand North Star, established a new platform to support and attract businesses to Dubai, oversaw the launch of the “Create Apps in Dubai” initiative, and published six insightful reports on the emirate’s digital economy.

Dubai Chamber of Commerce issued 735,155 certificates of origin in 2023, while the number of member exporters achieved YoY growth of 9.1 per cent to rise to 13,688.

In addition, 5,492 ATA Carnets were issued and received for commodities with a combined value of AED5bn ($1.4bn), representing a remarkable YoY growth in value of 47 per cent.

The chamber announced the establishment of 76 new sector-specific Business Groups in 2023, bringing the total number to 105.

A combined total of 145 meetings were also held with Business Groups and Councils. The chamber’s Business Advocacy sector reviewed a total of 111 laws and draft laws in cooperation with Business Groups, with the resulting recommendations achieving an adoption rate of 53 percent.

The Chamber of Commerce also received 141 mediation cases with a combined value of around AED49.6m ($13.5m), with 75 per cent of the cases successfully settled.

Commenting on the achievements, Abdul Aziz Abdulla Al Ghurair, Chairman of Dubai Chambers, said:  “2023 has been another year of landmark achievements for Dubai Chambers in which we furthered our commitment to serving our members’ interests.

“The record growth in the number of new member companies is a testament to our success in enhancing the competitiveness of the business community.

“Supporting the private sector remains a key priority for Dubai Chambers as part of our drive to achieve the wise leadership’s vision to advance sustainable development and achieve the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33).”

Omar Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications and Chairman of the Chamber of Digital Economy, emphasised the important role of digital technology in providing opportunities and building prospects to drive growth.

The chamber is working to achieve its strategic objectives by designing programmes and initiatives that develop the emirate’s digital infrastructure and building Dubai’s digital future by enhancing entrepreneurship and innovation to enable the city to reach the ranks of the world’s leading future economic models.

The International Chamber launched a total of 16 new international representative offices in 2023 to expand its global network to 31 offices across five continents.

The new openings place the chamber firmly on track to achieve the target of establishing 50 offices by 2030 outlined in the “Dubai Global” initiative launched by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai.

Working with its new and established international offices, the chamber facilitated a total of 3,762 meetings with overseas investors seeking to expand into the emirate.

The chamber led a total of 116 foreign trade missions to promote Dubai and attract investments, representing a YoY increase of 190 per cent.

The missions visited 68 cities in 44 countries, an increase of 113 percent in the number of cities visited compared to 2022. The International Chamber also hosted 237 visiting delegations with a total of 600 participants.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman of the International Chamber, said: “The chamber plays a vital role in supporting the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) through its integrated network of overseas offices, which are dedicated to attracting investments, supporting the international expansion of Dubai companies, and introducing the emirate’s competitive advantages to global investors.

“Our achievements over the past year serve to further cement Dubai’s position as a globally renowned incubator for foreign direct investment.”

Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of the Chambers, said: “Dubai Chambers has successfully achieved many of its strategic objectives, despite the global climate of economic uncertainty.

“We are committed to strengthening partnerships between the public and private sectors and driving economic growth while focusing on the interests of our members and businesses in Dubai.

“This year, we will continue to work closely with our partners to support the emirate’s dynamic business community through impactful initiatives, programmes, and services.”