Arab merchandise exports increased by 43% to $1.7tn in 2022

Arab merchandise exports increased by 43% to $1.7tn in 2022

KUWAIT: The Arab Investment & Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (Dhaman) unveiled that Arab trade in goods and services grew by 32.4% in 2022 to reach $3.5 trillion, buoyed by the growth of exports by 44% to exceed $2 trillion, along with the increase in imports by 20% to about $1.5 trillion.

The Corporation’s Director-General Abdullah Ahmad Al-Sabeeh announced in a press release, on the occasion of issuing the second quarterly bulletin “Dhaman Al-Istithmar” for 2023, that Arab merchandise trade increased by 32.6% to $2.9 trillion, as a result of the record growth of the region’s merchandise export by 43% to $1.7 trillion, in addition to the rise in imports by 20% to $1.1 trillion, with the merchandise trade balance recording a surplus of $558 billion in 2022. Al-Sabeeh added that Arab merchandise trade share rose to 5.7% of the global total, and about 13.2% of merchandise trade in developing countries.

As for the goods distribution, raw materials still represent the largest share of Arab exports by more than 75% as fuel exports alone make up around 62% of total merchandise trade, while manufactured goods represent 60% of Arab merchandise imports during 2022. The Director-General pointed out the continuation of geographical concentration in