Dubai commodities center attracts more Chinese firms

A growing number of Chinese enterprises from various sectors have settled in Dubai Multi Commodities Center, the largest free trade zone in the United Arab Emirates, as they look to expand their global presence in the Middle East region and beyond, said a senior executive.

DMCC has seen a 17.5 percent year-on-year growth in Chinese companies this year, fast approaching 1000, said DMCC's Executive Chairman and CEO Ahmed Bin Sulayem in an interview with China Daily during its roadshow in Beijing.

DMCC has established a dedicated China business center to assist Chinese companies with market entry, regulatory compliance, and cultural integration, demonstrating DMCC's commitment to catering to the specific needs of Chinese businesses, Sulayem added.

To date, DMCC hosts over 950 Chinese firms, home to 15 percent of the estimated 6,000 Chinese businesses in the UAE, including video surveillance supplier Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology, home appliance manufacturer Hisense and genomics sequencing company BGI Genomics, as well as China National Petroleum Corporation and China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation.

"We are not looking at 1,000 Chinese companies as a target. Instead, we are seeing the figure as a new starting line," Sulayem said, stressing that "there's a lot of opportunities underneath the iceberg" that DMCC can work with Chinese businesses in many fields such as fintech, gaming and diamond, as well as artificial intelligence.

DMCC launched its AI Center in September as Dubai's latest innovation platform to advance pragmatic AI adoption and the development of real-life use cases to scale throughout the Middle East and North Africa region.

DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, has visited DMCC recently, Sulayem said, adding that DMCC will keep in contact with DeepSeek for any possible cooperation.

"We knew about the needs of Chinese business five or ten years ago. However, our understanding might be very outdated today," Sulayem said, noting initiatives like DMCC's roadshows in Beijing and Shenzhen will play a pivotal role in unlocking new avenues for collaboration with Chinese companies.

China is the UAE's largest non-oil trading partner, with trade between the two countries expected to surpass $200 million by 2030, according to the UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"We will leverage this momentum to deepen our commercial ties and ensure DMCC remains the partner of choice for Chinese companies to veer into Dubai and beyond," Sulayem said.