Dubai Airport Freezone sustains strong economic ties between UAE and South Korea

Dubai, June 24, 2013 (WAM) - Dubai Airport Freezone (DAFZA) recently hosted two seminars in Seoul and Busan to maintain the United Arab Emirates' strong economic ties with South Korea. The seminars discussed the benefits of investing in Dubai, specifically DAFZA, and were held in the Chambers of Commerce and Industry in each city. The seminars were attended by more than 100 representatives from the private and public sectors. This comes at an appropriate time as the UAE-South Korea trade through the free zones areas accounted for US$2.2 billion of the country's overall trade in 2012, with promising opportunity for further growth[i]. The estimated volume of mutual investments between the two countries reached US$3.236 billion in 2012 The United Arab Emirates is currently the second largest Middle Eastern market for South Korean investments. The UAE is South Korea's largest export market in the Middle East. Trade between the two countries reached US$22 billion in 2011, according to figures from the Korea Trade Information Service (Kotis). The UAE's imports from Korea consist largely of machinery (33 per cent), electronics (25 per cent), and steel/metal items (22 per cent), according to Kotis data. There are currently 300 Korean companies registered in the UAE and over 12,000 Korean residents in the Emirates. In addition, the total value of contracts sealed by Korean companies in the UAE reached around Dh103 billion (US$28 billion) by the end of last year compared to Dh94 billion (US$25.6 billion) back in 2010. According to statistics, the UAE had announced earlier that it has signed a number of agreements with South Korea worth US$20 billion for building a number of nuclear power plants in the UAE, in addition to another agreements US$3.5 billion for establishing new projects in the field of supplies and logistics. Moreover, the South Korean investments also entered the hospitality filed for the first time, and this is due to the growing number of Korean residents in the UAE which increased by %200 in four years. The number of annual travellers between the UAE and South Korea grew to 100,000 in 2011 compared with 70,000 in 2010. South Korean firms and investors have been pioneers in leveraging Dubai's advantages as a regional hub. South Korea's economy is ranked fourth in Asia after Japan, China and India. It is also ranked 15th worldwide after its economy recorded high growth over the past few years. Well known South Korean brands, including Sangsin, KNOC and Dongbu Metal, are currently based in DAFZA, which is conveniently located next to Dubai International Airport. Additional to its prime location and attractive investment opportunities, international investors reap the benefits of dynamic growth through DAFZA's tax exemption and foreign ownership policies. – Emirates News Agency, WAM