A strengthening bridge between East and West

Experts explain how Dubai offers the very best in commercial opportunities and facilities

A strong and growing Chinese business community in Dubai is playing a significant role in continuing to develop what is now the world's third-largest transit port, after Hong Kong and Singapore.

Cong Hongbin, managing director of Invest Dubai, Falcon and Associates, an agency linking investors from emerging markets with a strong focus on China, says that the emirate's role in world trade has always been significant. But as a bridge between European, African and Asian markets, Dubai has now become an integral part of the global trade mechanism.

The Chinese national explains that Dubai's raison d'etre can be summed up by one of his favorite typical Chinese paradigms: "We've built the stage, so you can come and perform on it," he says, referring to how the emirate's authorities continue to establish the best commercial environment and facilities possible to woo businesses from all over the world.

He adds there are at least 2,500 Chinese businesses in Dubai, of which fewer than 20 are state companies, but he sees plenty of room for many more.

He notes that although Dubai is not a huge direct investment destination, it has become a base for many Chinese investments bound for Europe and Africa.

China's Big Four banks - Bank of China, Bank of Communications, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the Agricultural Bank of China - have all set up offices in Dubai, and as a result more Chinese companies are seriously looking at ventures in the wider United Arab Emirates, and the region, he says, with many Chinese companies already considering Dubai as their main trade hub.

The emirate's main economic policies are aimed squarely at attracting business, including low customs duties, 100 percent repatriation of capital and profits, no direct taxes on corporate profits or income, and no foreign exchange controls, quotas or other barriers to trade.

The government also highlights its proximity to some of the world's most dynamic economic regions, to compete with rivals such as Shanghai, Hong Kong and London, as a gateway into Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

The World Bank's "Ease of Doing Business" report this year listed the UAE as first in the region, and 23rd globally.

Encouraging Chinese enterprises to seize the opportunity for future international growth, Tang Weibin, China's consul-general in Dubai, notes that 2014 marks the 30th anniversary of China-UAE diplomatic relations, and estimates there are currently more than 200,000 Chinese people living and doing business in the emirate.

Figures from The China Entrepreneur Club - a delegation of influential entrepreneurs, economists and diplomats who work to strengthen economic and cultural relations between China and the UAE - show that trade between the UAE and China has surged in recent years, reaching $36.8 billion in 2013.

According to the latest statistics from UAE customs, China became Dubai's top foreign trade partner during the first half of this year, with trade value of AED80.5 billion ($21.9 billion), overtaking India, the US and even the emirate's close neighbor Saudi Arabia.

The two countries signed a 35 billion yuan ($5.7 billion) swap agreement in 2012, the first deal of its kind in the Middle East and an indication of the growing ties between the two.

Cong says that Dubai's own economic curve has mirrored that of China in recent decades as China's swelling middle class sought new opportunities for business and travel.

"Both China and Dubai's economies have a promising future together," he adds.

"Dubai has recovered from the impact of the global economic crisis and China is entering a new period of reform.

"We will certainly see more collaboration between the two."

Twice a year Cong's agency publishes a magazine called Vision which details Dubai's history, culture and daily life as well as business opportunities in China.

The magazine appears in major restaurants, hotels, Emirates airlines flights and other places.

Another important channel for information on connections between the two is visiondubai.cn, a website that, it says, opens a window on the real Dubai for Chinese people.

Business leaders agree that trade and business activities play a pivot role in the bilateral ties especially as Dubai's economy continues to pick up pace again after the international financial meltdown that hit the World Expo 2020 host city in 2008.

Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, the director of Dubai Customs, says Dubai imported Chinese goods worth $35.4 billion, of which 60 percent came from transit trade or re-export - Chinese goods transited in Dubai and then exported to other destinations.

Seventy percent of China-Arab trade now transits through Dubai, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, a business think tank.

Real estate is another sector that attracts many private enterprises, adds Cong.

After the 2008 global financial crisis, residential property prices crashed about 50 percent and many Chinese investors came to Dubai to hunt for bargains.

Relations are also growing on a cultural level. The Dubai Business Internships initiative, for instance, offers outstanding Chinese graduates the opportunity to study and do business in Dubai.

Each intern enters one of the emirate's most dynamic home-grown businesses, to experience working life.

Later this year (Oct 19-21) Asian ties with Dubai will be highlighted at the Boao Forum for Asia Financial Cooperation Conference.

The flagship event, facilitated by Falcon and Associates, is expected to attract 500 participants and will focus on driving the integration of Asian countries into the global economy.

leixiaocun@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 09/19/2014 page20)