Oman and the UAE feature in the top 10 markets that have most rapidly improved their trade growth potential over the past decade, according to new research from Standard Chartered.
The Trade20 Index, which identifies the 20 rising stars of global trade, also features Bahrain among the nations that have shown the most progression. The Trade20 Index determined each market’s potential for trade growth over the past 10 years by analyzing economic dynamism, trade readiness and export diversity.
The study examines 66 markets across the world. It finds that while existing trade powers like China and India continue to rapidly improve their potential, Middle Eastern countries have made strong progress, driven by export diversity improvements, indicating the economies that are successfully moving away from over-reliance on oil.
The key findings of the Trade20 Index for Middle Eastern markets are:
- Bahrain is a leader in terms of improving diversification, indicating that the country’s long-term efforts to move its economy away from a reliance on oil and develop its manufacturing, finance and services sectors
- The UAE sits at the top of a list of several Middle Eastern markets that are showing impressive trade readiness momentum, propelled by infrastructure investment and an e-commerce market that is rapidly gathering pace. The UAE has shown swifter progress than any other Middle Eastern nation, due largely to the government’s energetic focus on infrastructure improvements
- Oman is showing progress in terms of both economic diversity and trade readiness. It is implementing a diversification strategy that aims to focus on non-oil sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, tourism, fishing and mining, capitalizing on its natural resources.
