United Arab Emirates: Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise imports)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, United Arab Emirates' merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise imports) fell 0.96 percentage points on 2022 (from 13.74% to 12.77%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +0.45 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.22 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 5.09 percentage points in 2020 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.65 percentage points in 2017. 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 0.85 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 68% 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.

How it compares

In 2023, United Arab Emirates had the 27th highest value of the 198 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to United Arab Emirates in the 2023 ranking

• Benin — 24th of 198: 15.17%
• Mauritius — 25th of 198: 14.86%
• Senegal — 26th of 198: 13.1%
• Niger — 28th of 198: 11.71%
• Equatorial Guinea — 29th of 198: 11.36%
• Seychelles — 30th of 198: 10.53%

What this measures

Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa are the sum of merchandise imports by the reporting economy from low- and middle-income economies in the Sub-Saharan Africa region according to the World Bank classification of economies. Data are expressed as a percentage of total merchandise imports by the economy. Data are computed only if at least half of the economies in the partner country group had non-missing data.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 54 values

Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise imports) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 0.11% (2023)
• Algeria — 1.42% (2023)
• Bahrain — 1.07% (2023)
• Djibouti — 4.45% (2023)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 2.04% (2023)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 0.09% (2023)
• Iraq

More private sector & trade data for United Arab Emirates

• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$618.88 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$706.67 billion (2025)
• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 208.15% (2024)
• Merchandise imports from economies in the Arab World (% of total merchandise imports) — 8.27% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 40.32% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports) — 56.4% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 26.06% (2023)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is United Arab Emirates's merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise imports)?

12.77% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 11.43 percentage points from 1.35% in 1970. The highest value was 15.24% in 2021 and the lowest 0.02% in 1982.

How does United Arab Emirates rank?

27th highest of 198 economies with data for 2023.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator TM.VAL.MRCH.R6.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB); Direction of Trade database, International Monetary Fund (IMF) 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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