The United Arab Emirates is attending the 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services as the Country of Honor, the first country from the Middle East and North Africa region, to receive this distinction.

CIFTIS has now evolved into the world's largest comprehensive global services exhibition and a major platform for facilitating the opening up of China's service industries. The fair plays a pivotal role in the spreading of new ideas, connecting supply and demand, sharing business opportunities and promoting common development in the field of international trade in services.

On Wednesday, CIFTIS was officially kicked off in Beijing. Chinese Vice-Premier Han Zheng attended the opening ceremony of the UAE pavilion at CIFTIS. Ali Obaid AI Dhaheri, UAE ambassador to China, delivered a speech, extolling the recent and deepening growth experienced by the UAE-China trade and economic relationship.

"The UAE and China have both undergone a period of rapid economic growth," the ambassador said. "For the UAE and China, our strong relationship is built upon a foundation of shared values. We look forward to cooperating in growing dynamic and globalized financial industries, and the services industries that help to underpin both of our economies," he added.

In addition to the official representatives from the sector of culture and tourism, and UAE companies and enterprises, the UAE pavilion will showcase its aviation, financial, and cultural services organizations, as well as advanced manufacturing, comprehensively demonstrating the latest development of service trade in the UAE.

On Thursday, the embassy of the UAE in Beijing hosted an additional seminar, centered around the theme of "Diverse Economy". Al Dhaheri opened the event, delivering a speech. The UAE has strongly prioritized attracting FDI by improving the ease of doing business in its world-renowned cities, incentivizing economic diversification, and investing in logistics infrastructure. The seminar was followed by a signing ceremony of a global corporate deal between Etihad Airways and the China National Petroleum Corporation.

In 2020, foreign direct investment inflow to the UAE was about $19.9 billion. According to the UN World Investment Report 2021, the UAE ranked first in attracting FDI in the region. This year, for the first time, the UAE's non-oil foreign trade exceeded one trillion dirhams in just half a year, or 60 percent of the country's 2021 national GDP.

The UAE and China have maintained strong diplomatic relations since 1984. The two countries remain committed to expanding their cooperation across new areas and industries, under the comprehensive strategic partnership established in 2018.

Today, the UAE is China's largest export market and largest non-oil trading partner in the MENA region, with non-oil trade volume valued at over $50 billion. The UAE remains the largest logistics hub for China in the Middle East, with more than 60 percent of China's trade in the region transiting through the UAE.

The UAE's ports have become a regional hub in attracting international investment. The UAE has been placed in the first position among the Arab countries and the fourth globally in the quality of port infrastructure, according to the logistics industry report by Mordor Intelligence.