Dubai to launch global network of 50 offices for commerce promotion

Dubai, the finance and trade hub of the Middle East, will open a global network of 50 offices spanning five continents for the commercial promotion of the emirate.

The "Global Dubai" network aims to attract additional investments, open new markets and provide national companies with international exposure, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, said on Twitter on Tuesday. Dubai handles 11 per cent of the total global freight traffic through its ports and invests tens of billions in expanding its shipping lanes and air routes with more than 400 cities around the world, he said.

"We are the most rapidly growing, diversified and fast-growing city," Sheikh Hamdan said. "Our goal through Dubai Global is to convey our story to the world ... and that the world communicates commercially and economically through Dubai."

Dubai's economy grew 6.3 per cent year-on-year in the first nine months of 2021, according to preliminary data from the Dubai Statistics Centre.

Emirates NBD estimates Dubai's economy grew about 5.5 per cent for the full year 2021 — an upward revision from its earlier forecast of 4 per cent. With slower global growth, higher interest rates and a stronger US dollar, the lender expects growth of 4 per cent to 4.5 per cent in 2022