UAE maintains position among top global commodity trading hubs, DMCC’s ‘Future Of Trade’ report shows

The UAE has maintained its position among the top global commodity trading hubs, according to the third iteration of the Commodity Trade Index presented in DMCC’s latest Future of Trade 2022 report.

The Commodity Trade Index assesses the role of ten key trading hubs within global trade, ranking these countries in terms of their significance in the global commodities trade. The rankings are based on an analysis of ten indicators across three major factors: locational and trading partners, commodity endowments and institutional factors.

The 2022 Commodity Trade Index sees the United States maintain its position as the top global trading hub, scoring 58 percent overall, despite not recording the highest score in any of the three individual index pillars. Having led the index in its first iteration in 2018, the UAE stands in the second place with a score of 50 percent. The Netherlands entered the top three hubs for the first time, scoring 48 percent. Despite the rankings remaining relatively similar between 2020 and 2022, the spread between the top and bottom hubs became wider, suggesting that the pandemic has widened pre-existing gaps between countries in terms of their importance for commodities trade.

Feryal Ahmadi, Chief Operating Officer, DMCC, said, "Over the past few years, the commodities market has been heavily impacted by the pandemic and the associated supply chain issues. This has been compounded by additional macroeconomic factors such as heightened geopolitical tensions. The global economic environment remains challenging, however, the Commodity Trade Index proved that the UAE has firmly maintained its position as a world leading trade hub. Building on this momentum, DMCC will continue to prioritise increasing the ease of doing business and promoting the huge commercial potential that Dubai possesses."

The UAE recorded the top score for commodity endowment factors (74 percent), well ahead of all the other trading hubs, driven by its large natural supply of oil. The country came third for institutional factors (72 percent), largely due to its attractive tax rates and strong performance for logistics of trade.

The rankings for the other global commodity trade hubs include, Switzerland (48 percent), the United Kingdom (45 percent), Hong Kong (44 percent), Singapore (41 percent), China (32 percent), South Africa (21 percent) and Nigeria (16 percent).

The Future of Trade report is a synthesis of global viewpoints based on research, data and interviews with business leaders and trade experts. The 2022 edition of the report examines the changing nature of global trade, highlighting the role that geopolitics, technology and global economic trends will play in the future of trade, with a focus on trade growth, supply chains, trade finance, infrastructure and sustainability. In addition, it provides tangible recommendations to governments, policymakers and businesses that target trade growth.