Dubai and Abu Dhabi Accelerate Investment and Commercial Ties With China

Dubai is seeking new Chinese investments across artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, and fintech ahead of the Dubai Business Forum – China, scheduled for October 14 in Shenzhen. Organised by Dubai Chambers, the initiative aims to position Dubai as a hub for Chinese firms entering the Middle East. Trade corridors and digital logistics will be discussed with executives from Emirates SkyCargo, DP World China, iMile Delivery, and YTO International, following an earlier Beijing session attended by over 800 executives and investors. Confirmed participants for the Shenzhen event also include Baidu, Tencent Cloud, Huawei Cloud, and China Merchants Capital.

Separately, Masdar City Free Zone in Abu Dhabi opened its first representative office in China within the Suzhou Industrial Park during a UAE trade delegation trip that included the Abu Dhabi Investment Office. Suzhou Yingdi Consulting will operate the facility to assist Chinese enterprises entering Abu Dhabi. Masdar City Free Zone also concluded an agreement with Beijing's Zhongguancun innovation cluster regarding setup packages for startups; the free zone currently hosts over 2,000 companies from more than 90 countries.

Chinese commercial presence in the UAE has continued to expand, with cumulative Chinese direct investment reaching $12.47 billion following a recent $2.6 billion inflow. Recent corporate developments include China Securities securing DIFC regulatory approvals and JD.com's infrastructure unit committing to establish a major logistics complex in Abu Dhabi. Additionally, Gulf sovereign wealth funds accounted for 62 percent of the US$10.3 billion attracted by China from state-owned investors in 2024, focusing on finance, petrochemicals, renewables, logistics, and digital infrastructure.