Tradeco powers on in Middle East commerce

The Tradeco Group first ventured into the Middle East long before the region experienced the economic boom that continues to amaze the world with its unfettered growth and record-setting development projects.

In establishing the general trading company in 1980, Middle East bankers and a US oil company recruited former US diplomat James R. Fees, a renowned Middle East specialist, as chairman to give Tradeco the needed local knowledge to do business in the region.

Since his first visit to Dubai in 1973 as a US official, Fees has seen the emirate's transformation from a backwater economy that thrived on fishing and pearl farming to an influential financial center that has unveiled some of the world's most iconic skyscrapers and landmark projects.