UAE, Germany seek stronger trade relations in key sectors

Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, has held talks with Hendrik Josef Wüst, the Minister-President of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, in which they agreed to pursue stronger trade ties and collaborate in key sectors such as technology, advanced manufacturing and the green economy.

The meeting was followed by a business roundtable that paired senior figures from the region’s private sector with their UAE counterparts to explore areas of mutual benefit and discuss partnership opportunities.

North Rhine-Westphalia is the economic powerhouse of Germany. Home to 37 of the country’s top 100 corporations, the region’s GDP reached $990 billion in 2024, which equates to 20% of Germany’s total economic output. Although it has historically been Germany’s industrial heartland, its economic vision is focusing on digital technologies, artificial intelligence, smart manufacturing and the green economy, with research projects into water management and agri-tech solutions.

As such, it has many synergies with the United Arab Emirates, which is reflected in the growing ties between the two, including Emirati investments into North Rhine-Westphalia’s ammonia value chain and the developmentof hydrogen as a form of renewable energy.

Dr Thani said the meeting with HE Wüst highlighted these complementarities and offered a roadmap for greater collaboration in key sectors going forward:“The United Arab Emirates has long enjoyed a positive and productive relationship with Germany, and North Rhine-Westphalia, with its industrial heritage and forward-looking vision, has been central to it. From the digital economy to energy transition and the green economy, we see a multitude of avenues for cooperation and investment, while our free-trade network can ensure the region’s industrial output can seamlessly reach key markets in Asia and Africa.

The UAE also remains an open, welcoming business environment for any enterprises from North Rhine-Westphalia seeking to expand into the Middle East and help develop our industrial and innovation ecosystem.Today’s meeting with HE Wüst and the subsequent business roundtable will help create the networks that can facilitate this activity, and we remain on hand to support bilateral trade and investment flows in the months and years ahead.”

The United Arab Emirates and Germany, the third-largest economy in the world, shared non-oil trade worth $13.8 billion in 2024, a 5.4% increase on 2023. The UAE also has investments in excess of $1.2 billion committed to projects across Germany. The UAE recently announced its intentions to open negotiations towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union, of which Germany is the single largest economy.

In February, the United Arab Emirates and Germany reinforced their deep-rooted economic ties with the convening of the UAE-German Business Forum in Abu Dhabi.

The event, held at the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), gathered senior government officials, industry leaders, and private sector representatives from both nations to explore opportunities for further collaboration in key strategic sectors.

The forum was attended by Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Dr. Jörg Kukies, Germany’s Minister of Finance, along with Ahmed Alattar, UAE Ambassador to Germany, and Alexander Schönfelder, German Ambassador to the UAE, and leading figures from the UAE and German business communities.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Thani Al Zeyoudi underscored the strength of the UAE-Germany economic relationship and the potential to further expand bilateral trade and investment.

The forum discussions focused on strengthening cooperation in clean energy, finance, industrial technology, and logistics, with an emphasis on sustainability and innovation.

One of the key highlights was the progress made under the Energy Security and Industry Accelerator Agreement, signed in 2022. This agreement has facilitated investments in low-carbon ammonia, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and renewable energy projects, including Masdar’s investment in the Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm, which will soon supply clean energy to 475,000 households in Germany.

Additionally, discussions explored Germany’s increasing investment in the UAE’s advanced technology, AI, and industrial automation sectors, benefiting from the UAE’s NextGen FDI initiative, which supports high-growth companies expanding into the region.

The UAE and Germany continue to deepen their economic ties, with non-oil trade reaching US$13.8 billion in 2024, reflecting a 5.4 percent increase over 2023 and a 41 percent% rise compared to 2022. Germany remains the UAE’s second-largest trade partner within the EU and 13th globally, reinforcing the strength of their long-standing economic partnership and the steady growth of bilateral trade.

The UAE’s non-oil exports to Germany grew significantly by 44.7 percent in 2024, reaching $616 million, while re-exports totalled $1.1 billion, highlighting Germany’s role as a key gateway for global trade. Additionally, German imports to the UAE increased to US$12.1 billion, cementing Germany’s position as the UAE’s second-largest import partner within the EU and further accelerating the upward trajectory of trade relations between the two economies.

WAM