BMI: Dubai is recovering 98% of the size of its pre-pandemic economy

A report issued by the research company BMI confirmed that Dubai was able to restore the size of its pre-pandemic economy by 98%, with the support of the recovery of the retail, transportation and warehousing sectors, which have become the main engine of growth.
The newly released report touched on this strong recovery in the Dubai economy, despite the expectation of a slight slowdown in GDP growth from 4.2% in 2022 to 3.4% in 2023, indicating that this is due to the drop in oil prices.
Despite the potential slowdown, the growth outlook remains optimistic for BMI, with GDP rates expected to exceed the 2015-2019 average of 3.1%.
The research company expects a slower pace of growth in sectors including accommodation and food services, while indicating that the number of tourists coming to the UAE will continue to increase by 10% in 2023. And the year 2022 witnessed a strong increase of 55% in tourism supported by the removal of restrictions Traveling around the world.
Despite a slight decrease of 4% in the number of tourists compared to pre-pandemic levels, this sector in Dubai achieved a strong performance in 2023, as the emirate attracted 6.02 million visitors in the first four months of the year, an increase of 18% year-on-year.
According to Emirates NBD research calculations, the record-breaking Ramadan season saw an influx of 1.35 million visitors to Dubai, reflecting a growth of 19 percent from 2022 and a 50 percent increase compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019.
According to BMI, sectors such as wholesale and retail, transportation and warehousing, finance and insurance, as well as manufacturing, real estate and construction are expected to contribute significantly to Dubai’s GDP growth in 2023.
The report also predicted that growth in the transportation and storage sector will remain strong, benefiting from the normalization of global trade, the recovery of mainland China, the emirate’s main trading partner, resilient demand in neighboring Gulf countries, and increased efforts to boost business and trade.
Moreover, the financial sector is expected to maintain its upward trajectory, supported by the listing of companies on the Dubai Financial Market and the continued momentum in the local stock market.