Trade through DIEZ free zones rises 17% to AED 246 billion in first half

Trade across the three economic zones of the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), Dubai Airport Freezone, Dubai Silicon Oasis and Dubai CommerCity, reached AED 246 billion in the first half of 2026, up 17% on a year earlier, DIEZ said on 19 October. It was the sixth year in a row of record first-half trade for the zones.

Imports rose 14% to AED 134.8 billion, re-exports grew 22% to about AED 108.8 billion, and direct exports were about AED 2.4 billion. The zones' share of Dubai's non-oil trade rose to about 16% from 15.4%. By weight, trade fell to about 270,000 tonnes from 298,000 tonnes, a sign of higher-value goods.

Machinery, equipment and electrical goods made up about 66% of trade, and precious stones, metals and jewellery about 30%, the latter up 18%. China was the largest partner at AED 69.8 billion (28.4%), followed by Saudi Arabia at AED 26.5 billion, India at AED 17.6 billion and Vietnam at AED 13.2 billion.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, praised the results. "Competition in global trade is no longer determined by trade volumes alone," he said. "Increasingly, it depends on the ability of economic hubs to ensure the continuity of trade flows, maintain resilient supply chains, and respond swiftly to change."

DIEZ said linking logistics across its zones helped businesses adjust to changes in shipping routes during the disruption. For electronics and jewellery traders using Dubai as a re-export base, the numbers show the airport-side free zones kept working while sea routes were under strain.