Dubai's economy grew by 4 per cent annually in the first quarter of 2025, backed by expansion across several key sectors.
The emirate's gross domestic product rose to Dh119.7 billion ($32.6 billion) in the three months that ended in March, Dubai Media Office said on Thursday.
The growth was driven by “strong performances” in key sectors, with human health and social work posting the highest year-on-year growth rate at 26 per cent to hit Dh1.9 billion, it said.
In terms of value, the wholesale and retail trade sector was the biggest at Dh27.5 billion, up 4.5 per cent year-on-year and contributing nearly a quarter to Dubai's economy in the first three months.
Activity in real estate, one of Dubai's most important sectors, rose 7.8 per cent to about Dh9 billion.
The volume and value of real estate transactions in Dubai rose sharply in the first half of the year amid the entry of more than 59,000 new investors into the booming market, Dubai Media Office said last month, quoting Dubai Land Department data.
The number of transactions reached 125,538, up nearly 26 per cent from 99,947 during the first six months of last year. The value of these transactions rose about 25 per cent to about Dh431 billion, “highlighting the strong growth momentum in the market”, the report said.
In the first quarter, financial and insurance, another key industry in Dubai, grew 5.9 per cent to Dh16 billion. Manufacturing grew 3.3 per cent to Dh8.7 billion.
Accommodation and food services posted a 3.4 per cent increase to reach Dh4.9 billion, the report found.
Dubai received 9.88 million international visitors in the first six months of 2025, Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed said this month.
Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism said the latest figure represents a 6 per cent year-on-year increase. The data highlights Dubai's continuing growth as a global tourism hub, after the city welcomed a record 18.72 million international visitors last year.
Meanwhile, transport and storage added 2 per cent to Dubai's GDP in the second quarter, at Dh15.7 billion. Information and telecoms rose 3.2 per cent to Dh5.3 billion.
Overall, the trade, real estate, financial services, transport and industry sectors collectively contributed about 78 per cent of Dubai's total growth, the media office said.
“At a time when businesses, investors and entrepreneurs are seeking stability and certainty, Dubai’s sustained and diversified economic growth continues to underscore its global appeal,” said Hadi Badri, chief executive of Dubai Economic Development Corporation.
The emirate remains focused on boosting domestic and international partnerships through strategic initiatives to unlock "new opportunities, enabling innovation, and turning ideas and plans into scaleable, commercial successes", he added.
Dubai's economy has been expanding on the back of several government initiatives aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship and attracting international investments
The emirate is currently working towards its Dubai Economic Agenda, or D33, which aims to double the size of its economy to Dh32 trillion over the next decade and establish the emirate among the top three global cities.
The wider UAE has also undergone robust growth in its economy, which expanded by 4 per cent in 2024 to hit Dh1.776 trillion, driven by its non-oil sector as the country continues to diversify, official data showed in June.
The World Bank in June upgraded its economic growth forecast for the UAE to 4.6 per cent this year, up from its 4 per cent projection in January.
Emirates NBD, Dubai's biggest bank by assets, expects the emirate's economy accelerate to 3.7 per cent this year on the back of substantial project spending from both the private and public sectors.
The UAE has also been ranked as the world's second most preferred destination for foreign direct investments.
The Emirates, which received Dh167 billion in FDI last year, aims to increase that figure to Dh1.3 trillion by 2031.
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
The specs: 2018 Dodge Durango SRT
Price, base / as tested: Dh259,000
Engine: 6.4-litre V8
Power: 475hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 640Nm @ 4,300rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
RESULTS
6.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1.600m
Winner: Miller’s House, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Kanood, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Gervais, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
8.15pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Important Mission, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.50pm: The Entisar Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Zhou Storm, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
Teri%20Baaton%20Mein%20Aisa%20Uljha%20Jiya
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirectors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Amit%20Joshi%20and%20Aradhana%20Sah%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECast%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Shahid%20Kapoor%2C%20Kriti%20Sanon%2C%20Dharmendra%2C%20Dimple%20Kapadia%2C%20Rakesh%20Bedi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Three-day coronation
Royal purification
The entire coronation ceremony extends over three days from May 4-6, but Saturday is the one to watch. At the time of 10:09am the royal purification ceremony begins. Wearing a white robe, the king will enter a pavilion at the Grand Palace, where he will be doused in sacred water from five rivers and four ponds in Thailand. In the distant past water was collected from specific rivers in India, reflecting the influential blend of Hindu and Buddhist cosmology on the coronation. Hindu Brahmins and the country's most senior Buddhist monks will be present. Coronation practices can be traced back thousands of years to ancient India.
The crown
Not long after royal purification rites, the king proceeds to the Baisal Daksin Throne Hall where he receives sacred water from eight directions. Symbolically that means he has received legitimacy from all directions of the kingdom. He ascends the Bhadrapitha Throne, where in regal robes he sits under a Nine-Tiered Umbrella of State. Brahmins will hand the monarch the royal regalia, including a wooden sceptre inlaid with gold, a precious stone-encrusted sword believed to have been found in a lake in northern Cambodia, slippers, and a whisk made from yak's hair.
The Great Crown of Victory is the centrepiece. Tiered, gold and weighing 7.3 kilograms, it has a diamond from India at the top. Vajiralongkorn will personally place the crown on his own head and then issues his first royal command.
The audience
On Saturday afternoon, the newly-crowned king is set to grant a "grand audience" to members of the royal family, the privy council, the cabinet and senior officials. Two hours later the king will visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred space in Thailand, which on normal days is thronged with tourists. He then symbolically moves into the Royal Residence.
The procession
The main element of Sunday's ceremonies, streets across Bangkok's historic heart have been blocked off in preparation for this moment. The king will sit on a royal palanquin carried by soldiers dressed in colourful traditional garb. A 21-gun salute will start the procession. Some 200,000 people are expected to line the seven-kilometre route around the city.
Meet the people
On the last day of the ceremony Rama X will appear on the balcony of Suddhaisavarya Prasad Hall in the Grand Palace at 4:30pm "to receive the good wishes of the people". An hour later, diplomats will be given an audience at the Grand Palace. This is the only time during the ceremony that representatives of foreign governments will greet the king.
