UAE GDP exceeds Dh1tr for first time

The UAE real GDP grew by around 4.4 per cent in 2012 to jump above Dh1 trillion for the first time since the country was founded more than 40 years ago. Official data showed real GDP stood at around Dh1.02 trillion and the non-oil sector accounted for more than two thirds of the economy. In current prices, GDP surged by about 10 per cent, fuelled by a sharp rise in oil prices which hit their highest average, the figures showed. "Real GDP expanded by around 4.4 per cent in 2012 to reach Dh1.02 trillion…it was the first time that GDP surpassed the Dh 1 million mark,” said Rashid Al Suwaidi, director general of the National Statistics Bureau. His figures, published in the semi-official daily Alittihad, showed the non-oil sector accounted for more than two thirds of GDP, standing at around Dh690.3 billion. "There was positive growth in all non-oil sectors last year…this was the main factor in growth in the overall GDP and this has allowed the UAE to maintain its position as one of the largest economies,” he said. He put inflation in the UAE, the second largest Arab economy after Saudi Arabia, at only around 0.66 per cent in 2012 and expected the rate to edge up to 1.01 per cent in 2013.