SCAD: Non-oil merchandise trade through the ports of Abu Dhabi stood at Dhs11.8bn in September 2012

It worth noting that the movement of merchandise reported in this statistic does not represent the whole of Abu Dhabi Emirate's foreign trade, a large proportion of which flows through the ports of other emirates.

Merchandise trade: September 2012

According to SCAD's report, the total value of non-oil merchandise trade in September 2012 was Dhs11,793m, of which Dhs9,242m (78.4% of total) was imports, Dhs1,242m (10.5% of total) was non-oil exports of and Dhs1,309m (11.1% of total) was re-exports.

Total non-oil merchandise trade dropped by Dhs242m (2.0%) in September compared with August 2012, with non-oil exports retreating by Dhs948m (43.3%) while imports advanced by Dhs478m (5.5%) and re-exports by Dhs227m (21.0%) over the same period of time.

A year on year comparison (September 2012/2011) shows a decrease of Dhs160m (1.3%) in total trade, with imports decreasing by Dhs1,140m (11.0%), while non-oil exports increased by Dhs684m (122.5%) and re-exports by Dhs297m (29.3%), over the same period.

Non-oil merchandise trade: September compared with August 2012

Analysis of trade data for September compared with August 2012 reveals a rise of 5.5% in imports, due to increases in the imports of "Machinery and transport equipment" by Dhs432m (10.0%) and "Chemicals and related products" by Dhs249m(29.9%).

Meanwhile, the value of non-oil exports declined by 43.3%, reflecting decreases of Dhs600m (79.3%) in "Machinery and transport equipment", Dhs289m (44.6%) in "Chemicals and related products" and Dhs115m (24.5% in "Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material".

On the other hand, re-exports advanced by 21.0%, with increases of Dhs192m (26.7%) in "Machinery and transport equipment" and Dhs47m (143%) in "Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material".

Non-oil merchandise trade in September 2012 compared with September 2011

A year-on-year comparison of non-oil merchandise trade data ( for September 2012/2011) indicates a fall of 11 percent in the value of imports, due to decreases of Dhs713m (13.0%) in "Machinery and transport equipment" and Dhs417m (55.0%) in "Other" commodities.

By contrast, non-oil exports advanced 122.5%, with increases of Dhs257m (1,268.9%) in "Miscellaneous manufactured items", Dhs180m (100.5%) in "Chemicals and related products" and Dhs118m (49.6%) in "Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material".

Similarly, the value of re-exports increased by 29.3%, reflecting increases of Dhs288m (46.4%) in "Machinery and transport equipment" and Dhs53m (143.0%) in "Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material", which were partially offset by a decrease of Dhs41m (17.9%) in "Miscellaneous manufactured items".

Non-oil merchandise trade by country: September 2012

SCAD's report also details the imports, non-oil exports and re-exports in September 2012 by value and trading partner, revealing that the top countries of origin for imports were USA, which was the source of imports worth (Dhs1,119m), Germany (Dhs1,117m) and Saudi Arabia (Dhs915m). Together, these three countries supplied 34.1% of Abu Dhabi's total imports in September 2012.

China was the top destination of Abu Dhabi's non-oil exports in September 2012, receiving merchandise worth (Dhs372m), followed by Saudi Arabia (Dhs363m) and Singapore (Dhs106m). The combined share of these three countries was 67.7% of total non-oil exports in September 2012.

Bahrain topped the list of destinations for Abu Dhabi's re-exports by value, receiving merchandise worth (Dhs271m), followed by Qatar (Dhs200m) and Saudi Arabia (Dhs178m). Re-exports to these top three countries made up 49.6% of total re-exports during September 2012.

Historical series of monthly trade data- January 2010 to September 2012

SCAD explained that the largest monthly figure for imports through the ports of Abu Dhabi over the period from January 2010 to September 2012 was Dhs12,777m, recorded in October 2011, while the largest non-oil exports figure (Dhs3,261m) was recorded in August 2010, and the largest re-exports (Dhs1,360m) in May 2012.

The Centre noted that the goods covered under the report methodology do not belong entirely to the Emirate of Abu Dhabi but to other Emirates as well. This report does not record Abu Dhabi's trade through the ports of the other Emirates either.

The report data have been sourced from the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance - Customs Administration, with the scope of the statistic therefore restricted to the trade flows recorded at ports operated under the jurisdiction of the Customs Administration. The report highlights the relative importance of each individual component of imports, non-oil exports and re-exports.