United Arab Emirates: Exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, United Arab Emirates' exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU) rose 7% on 2022 (from 1.85 trillion to 1.98 trillion).

Across the 21 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2022), the average change was +9.7% and a typical year strayed about 14% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 30.4% in 2011 and the biggest yearly fall was 19.6% in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is upward, about 58.03 billion a year. A straight line explains 52% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to United Arab Emirates in the 2023 ranking

• Togo — 2nd of 3: 1.22 trillion
• Greenland — 3rd of 3: 8.25 billion

What this measures

Exports as a capacity to import equals the current price value of exports of goods and services deflated by the import price index. This indicator is expressed in constant prices, meaning the series has been adjusted to account for price changes over time. The reference year for this adjustment varies by country. This series is expressed in local currency units.

All 23 values

Exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU) in nearby economies

• Algeria — 2.07 trillion (2025)
• Bahrain — 13.89 billion (2024)
• Djibouti — 977.34 billion (2025)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 1.48 trillion (2025)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 10,725.8 trillion (2025)
• Iraq — 94.37 trillion (2024)
• Israel — 488.71 billion (2025)
• Kuwait — 20.52 billion (2024)
• Lebanon — 7.78 trillion (2024)
• Libya

More economic policy & debt data for United Arab Emirates

• Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$) — US$48.24 billion (2025)
• Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) — 8.26% (2024)
• GDP (current US$) — US$552.33 billion (2024)
• GDP (current LCU) — 2.03 trillion (2024)
• GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$457.09 billion (2024)
• GDP (constant LCU) — 1.78 trillion (2024)
• GDP per capita (current US$) — US$50,274 (2024)
• GDP per capita (current LCU) — 184,629 (2024)
• GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$41,605 (2024)
• GDP per capita (constant LCU)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is United Arab Emirates's exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU)?

1.98 trillion in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2001?

It is up 532.07% from 313.02 billion in 2001 (8.74% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 1.98 trillion in 2023 and the lowest 313.02 billion in 2001.

Is the latest change in exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU) unusual for United Arab Emirates?

In 2023, United Arab Emirates' exports as a capacity to import (constant LCU) rose 7% on 2022 (from 1.85 trillion to 1.98 trillion). Across the 21 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2022), the average change was +9.7% and a typical year strayed about 14% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NY.EXP.CAPM.KN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks; National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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