Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, chairman of Dubai Chambers, said there is huge potential to expand trade with the Asean bloc and tap into existing synergies. Photo: Dubai Chamber
Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, chairman of Dubai Chambers, said there is huge potential to expand trade with the Asean bloc and tap into existing synergies. Photo: Dubai Chamber
Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, chairman of Dubai Chambers, said there is huge potential to expand trade with the Asean bloc and tap into existing synergies. Photo: Dubai Chamber
Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, chairman of Dubai Chambers, said there is huge potential to expand trade with the Asean bloc and tap into existing synergies. Photo: Dubai Chamber

UAE seeks more trade opportunities with Asean markets before economic partnership meeting


Alvin R Cabral
  • English
  • Arabic

The UAE is keen to boost trade with the Association of South-East Asian Nations and create innovative ecosystems that foster long-term sustainable partnerships with the regional bloc.

The opportunity comes at a "critical juncture" as the world continues to recover from coronavirus-induced slowdown and at a time of growing trade between the GCC and 10-member Asean bloc, that is set to reshape the future of global trade and connectivity.

The remarks were made by Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Co-operation, said at the opening of the first Global Business Forum (GBF) Asean at Expo 2020 Dubai on Wednesday.

"We convene [at] a critical juncture, a moment at which we must embrace the opportunity that comes with our very nature, which is to be resilient, responsible and always seek to lead by example," Ms Al Hashimy said.

"If the pandemic laid bare the fragility of traditional economic systems, it also underscored the potential of those accelerating their adoption of digitisation."

The inaugural GBF Asean meeting comes before the January 1 enforcement of the Regional Economic Comprehensive Partnership (RCEP), which is expected to be the world's largest free trade deal.

It will cover $26.2 trillion of global output and a market of 2.2 billion people, and add about $186bn to global gross domestic product within nine years.

The Asean bloc includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Non-Asean signatories to the RCEP include Australia, China, Japan and New Zealand.

"The world has witnessed the unprecedented trend of deepening economic integration, along with globalisation and trade liberalisation," Nguyen Hong Dien, Vietnam's Minister of Industry and Trade, said at the event.

"Asean stays firm with the commitments of economic integration, taking the promotion of regional and-international economic co-operation as a tool to mitigate the negative impacts of Covid-19 and promote post-pandemic economic recovery."

The digital economy will be critical to driving growth in Asean's key sectors.

Executives in transport and logistics (90 per cent), agriculture and food (90 per cent), retail and e-commerce (87 per cent) and financial services and FinTech (83 per cent) were most optimistic about revenue expansion in 2022, according to a survey released on Wednesday by the Economist Intelligence Unit and the Dubai Chamber.

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The growing use of digital platforms is expected to enhance efficiency and help companies to deliver innovative services to businesses and consumers.

A greater share of respondents expect most of their revenue to be secured through online channels in 2022 (67 per cent), compared with 2019 (26 per cent), it said.

The global economic slowdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic caused real GDP in the Asean region to drop by 4.3 per cent in 2020, according to EIU estimates.

Contraction in trade activity was modest, with total exports from Asean having fallen to $1.39tn in 2020, from $1.42tn the previous year.

Although more than 40 per cent of respondents reported a contraction in revenue in last year, the revenue of 32 per cent expanded.

However, 70 per cent of those in health care, 67 per cent in financial services and FinTech and 50 per cent in professional services and marketing said revenue expanded in 2020, according to the study.

UAE entities have signed numerous partnerships with their Asean peers, driving investment across smart city development, knowledge transfer, healthcare delivery, technology, manufacturing, food and beverage, retail, e-commerce, ports and logistics, FinTech and hydrocarbon storage, Ms Al Hashimy said.

We convene [at] a critical juncture. If the pandemic laid bare the fragility of traditional economic systems, it also underscored the potential of those accelerating their adoption of digitisation
Reem Al Hashimy,
UAE Minister of State for International Co-operation

"The nations of the Gulf and South-East Asia are leading proponents of these forward-thinking arts. We are entrepreneurs and we are problem solvers, always seeking new perspectives to satisfy curiosity and spark creativity," she said.

The Emirates has invested about $10bn since 2016 in Asean markets, accounting for more than 70 per cent of total investments from the Gulf.

Food and beverage imports from the bloc to the UAE topped $800 million in 2020. The bloc also accounted for more than 70 per cent of Dubai's palm oil imports and about a third of its coffee and tea.

The number of Asean companies registered with the chamber stands at more than 3,300, up 35.5 per cent since 2018, with non-oil trade between Dubai and Asean nations in the last five years at $110bn, Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, chairman of Dubai Chamber, said in his speech.

"Yet, there is huge potential to expand bilateral trade further and tap into existing synergies. In order for this to happen, we must work together to remove trade barriers, facilitate the ease of doing business and identify new areas where we can align our ambitions.”

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Company profile

Name: The Concept

Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal

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Number of employees: 7

Sector: Aviation and space industry

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School counsellors on mental well-being

Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.

Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.

Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.

“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.

“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.

“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.

“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”

Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.

The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.

At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.

“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.

“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.

"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”

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What is graphene?

Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.

It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.

Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.

By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.

At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.

It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.

But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.

In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties. 

 

BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities

Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

Three ways to boost your credit score

Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:

1. Make sure you make your payments on time;

2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;

3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Updated: December 08, 2021, 10:58 AM`