Abu Dhabi private sector moves up

Abu Dhabi’s private sector has steadily grown over the past years to reach nearly a third of the emirate’s GDP and largely surpass the government sector. Figures by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry showed the private sector would grow by around 6.4 per cent in 2012 while the non-oil government is projected to expand by 5.5 per cent. The private sector’s contribution to GDP was estimated at around Dh218 billion in 2011 and is forecast to climb to Dh232 billion in 2012, the report showed. The non-oil government sector stood at about Dh126 billion and could swell to nearly Dh133 billion this year, the report said. It showed the oil sector remained the dominant component of GDP, standing at nearly Dh347 billion in 2011, nearly half the overall GDP of Dh691 billion. The report expected the hydrocarbon sector to grow by around 10.9 per cent to Dh385 billion in 2012. It gave no reason for the large increase but crude prices are projected to hit a record high average in 2012 while the UAE’s oil output will likely remain at its highest level of 2.6 million bpd. Overall real GDP is projected to rise by nearly 8.5 per cent to a record high of around Dh750 billion in 2012 to maintain the emirate’s position as the largest UAE economy, controlling over 60 per cent of the country’s GDP. A breakdown showed services sectors will grow by around seven per cent to Dh244 billion in 2012 from Dh228 billion in 2011 while non-oil productive sectors will increase by 4.5 per cent to Dh161 billion from Dh154 billion. “It is estimated that the contribution of the oil sector, including its two main components (crude oil, refining and gas liquefaction), would reach nearly 50 per cent of GDP, which is expected to have risen to Dh691,” the Chamber said.