Official outward foreign direct investment data released on September 30, 2026, showed that Chinese direct investment into the United Arab Emirates reached $2.6 billion in the latest annual reporting cycle. This capital flow represented a more than threefold increase over the previous year, positioning the UAE as the leading recipient of Chinese outbound investment in the Middle East. The cumulative stock of Chinese direct investment in the UAE expanded to $12.47 billion, driven largely by capital deployment in logistics, digital infrastructure, and renewable energy.
Alongside macro investment expansion, Chinese corporate entities marked several operational developments in the country. Beijing-based China Securities secured a regulatory licence from the Dubai Financial Services Authority to establish a regional presence within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Additionally, JINGDONG Property entered into an agreement to develop a 150,000-square-metre logistics park in Abu Dhabi's Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD).
In the technology sector, autonomous driving enterprise Baidu officially launched a 2,000-square-metre Apollo Go operations and control centre in Dubai, as reported by the Emirates News Agency (WAM). The facility supports the deployment of commercial robotaxi fleets and fleet management, aligning with Dubai's target to convert 25 percent of total transportation to autonomous modes by 2030, where autonomous taxi networks have surpassed 4 million operational kilometres across trials and commercial runs.
Sources
- Seoul Economic Daily · 2026-09-30
