Chinese customs data shows trade with 23 Middle East and North Africa countries reached $329.3 billion in the first nine months of 2026. Crude oil imports from the region fell 38.6% year-on-year amid shipping frictions, while passenger vehicle exports totaled $15.9 billion.
The Ras Al Khaimah Chamber of Commerce and Industry has signed an MoU with the Guangzhou Tianhe CBD Administrative Committee to advance trade and investment. The signing in Guangzhou was attended by Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi. The agreement aims to facilitate business matchmaking and reciprocal trade delegations.
Dubai CommerCity has established a partnership with the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park Limited to assist technology firms expanding between the UAE and China. The initiative enables Middle Eastern firms to access mainland China via Hong Kong while bringing Chinese tech enterprises into Dubai. The framework includes access to office space, mentorship, entrepreneurship programmes, and investor networks.
Slowing Chinese demand growth for liquefied natural gas is impacting expansion plans for multi-billion-dollar export facilities in the Arabian Gulf and the United States. Forecasters including JPMorgan, Wood Mackenzie, and S&P Global Energy lowered China's projected early 2030s LNG demand growth by 14 million to 22 million tons.
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