The UAE and China signed agreements to boost co-operation in investments, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), industry and technology, and tourism during President Sheikh Mohamed's visit to Beijing on Thursday.
The two countries also agreed to promote investment co-operation in green development, according to a report by state news agency Wam.
The announcement comes as the UAE, the Arab world’s second-largest economy, continues to bolster its ties with China, the world's second-largest economy.
The UAE is China's largest trading partner in the Arab world, with trade and investment spanning many sectors, including crude oil, petrochemicals and artificial intelligence. China is the UAE’s leading trade partner with non-oil bilateral trade worth Dh264.2 billion ($72 billion) in 2022.
Chinese investments in the UAE increased by more than 16 per cent annually last year to $1.3 billion, Zhang Yiming, China’s ambassador to the UAE, said at an Abu Dhabi event this month.
The UAE boosted its investments in China by 120 per cent last year, accounting for “90 per cent of Arab countries' investments in China”, Mr Zhang said.
The two countries are also co-operating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a mega project launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 that aims to connect several countries in Asia, Europe and Africa through a network of infrastructure and trade-related projects.
The BRI encompasses around 65 nations and represents 30 per cent of the world's gross domestic product. The UAE is playing an important part in the initiative, with its airports and global ports for transporting large volumes of cargo to boost trade, Wam said in a report last year.
The value of the UAE's non-oil trade with countries participating in the BRI reached $305 billion in the first half of 2023, up 13 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year. This accounts for 90 per cent of the UAE's non-oil trade during that period, according to the report.
About 88 per cent of the UAE's imports also originate from countries actively involved in the BRI, while 94 per cent of the UAE's non-oil exports go towards these countries.
“The UAE's active participation and endorsement of the initiative will further fuel increased trade, infrastructure development, and transportation projects while lowering investment costs,” the report said.
The UAE has also invested $10 billion in a joint China-UAE investment fund to support BRI projects in East Africa. It is a founding member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank that is playing a key part in funding BRI projects.
The UAE and China are also co-operating in the financial sector. Last year, the UAE Central Bank and the People’s Bank of China signed an agreement in Hong Kong to renew their bilateral currency swap pact for five years. The size of the agreement is Dh18 billion.
Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investment arm Mubadala Investment Company has also co-led a $300 million series B funding round for China’s industrial supply chain technology company, JD Industrials, alongside global investment manager 42XFund.
Investcorp, an alternative asset manager that counts Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, has also teamed up with China’s sovereign wealth fund to launch a $1 billion fund that will invest in high-growth companies in Saudi Arabia, other GCC countries and China.
Some of the agreements signed by the UAE and China during the visit
• An agreement on the joint formulation of the co-operation plan on the Belt and Road Initiative
• An agreement on establishing the China-UAE High-Level Investment Co-operation Committee
• An agreement on co-operation in the field of industries and technologies
• An agreement on establishing the investment and economic co-operation working group
• An agreement on promoting investment co-operation in green development
At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
Brief scores:
Huesca 0
Real Madrid 1
Bale 8'
Pros%20and%20cons%20of%20BNPL
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPros%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3EEasy%20to%20use%20and%20require%20less%20rigorous%20credit%20checks%20than%20traditional%20credit%20options%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EOffers%20the%20ability%20to%20spread%20the%20cost%20of%20purchases%20over%20time%2C%20often%20interest-free%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EConvenient%20and%20can%20be%20integrated%20directly%20into%20the%20checkout%20process%2C%20useful%20for%20online%20shopping%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EHelps%20facilitate%20cash%20flow%20planning%20when%20used%20wisely%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECons%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3EThe%20ease%20of%20making%20purchases%20can%20lead%20to%20overspending%20and%20accumulation%20of%20debt%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EMissing%20payments%20can%20result%20in%20hefty%20fees%20and%2C%20in%20some%20cases%2C%20high%20interest%20rates%20after%20an%20initial%20interest-free%20period%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EFailure%20to%20make%20payments%20can%20impact%20credit%20score%20negatively%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ERefunds%20can%20be%20complicated%20and%20delayed%0D%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ECourtesy%3A%20Carol%20Glynn%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
Roger Federer's 2018 record
Australian Open Champion
Rotterdam Champion
Indian Wells Runner-up
Miami Second round
Stuttgart Champion
Halle Runner-up
Wimbledon Quarter-finals
Cincinnati Runner-up
US Open Fourth round
Shanghai Semi-finals
Basel Champion
Paris Masters Semi-finals
SCORES IN BRIEF
Lahore Qalandars 186 for 4 in 19.4 overs
(Sohail 100,Phil Salt 37 not out, Bilal Irshad 30, Josh Poysden 2-26)
bt Yorkshire Vikings 184 for 5 in 20 overs
(Jonathan Tattersall 36, Harry Brook 37, Gary Ballance 33, Adam Lyth 32, Shaheen Afridi 2-36).
Match info
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Liverpool v Porto, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
RESULTS
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner AF Nashrah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner Mutaqadim, Riccardo Iacopini, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
6pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Hameem, Jose Santiago, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner AF Almomayaz, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Dalil Al Carrere, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash.
7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Jayide Al Boraq, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi.
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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