The UAE constitutes the largest market for Japanese exports to the Middle East markets, with a value amounting during the period from January to November 2023, about 8 billion dollars (29.3 billion dirhams).

According to official data, the UAE, which has more than 350 Japanese companies operating in all sectors, accounts for the equivalent of 39.5 percent of Japan’s total exports to the Middle East, estimated at about $20.4 billion (74.8 billion dirhams) during that period referred to.

Mohammed Ali Rashid Lootah, Director General of Dubai Chambers, said during the first edition of the Japan-Kyoto Trade Fair: The total number of active Japanese companies registered in the Chamber’s membership at the end of last year reached 310 companies, including 119 new Japanese companies that joined the Chamber’s membership in the year 2023. , according to a press release.

It is expected that the coming period will witness strong momentum in trade and investment movement between the UAE and Japan, with Japanese companies increasing interest in expanding their presence in the UAE as a main gateway to the region's markets.

The activities of the first edition of the Japan-Kyoto Trade Fair were launched earlier at the Dubai World Trade Center, with the participation of more than 100 Japanese companies and institutions.

The exhibition, which is expected to attract more than 20,000 visitors over its three days, was opened by Mohammed Ali Rashid Lootah, Director General of Dubai Chambers, and Akimasa Yamashita, Deputy Governor of Japan's Kyoto Prefecture, in the presence of a large number of officials, businessmen and investors in the two countries.

The exhibition, which is organized by the Japanese Maiko Enterprise Foundation as the first comprehensive platform to showcase the innovations of Japanese companies to the business sector and investors in the UAE and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, enjoys major support from the Japanese government of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as from the Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai, and Dubai Chambers, with the aim of contributing to enhancing... Economic and trade ties between the UAE and Japan.