US direct investment in Dubai reached AED14.3 billion ($3.89 billion) in the first half of 2025, which is double of the total US investment in the emirate during 2024, Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, has said. 

Participating in a panel session at the Dubai Business Forum – USA in New York, he said the investment is an indicator of Dubai's growing appeal as a global investment hub for the American business community, said a WAM news agency report.

He noted that Dubai serves as a vital centre for American companies seeking expansion into high-potential global markets, particularly in Africa. 

Dubai’s non-oil trade with African countries reached AED354.5 billion in 2024, 34 percent higher than the United States’ trade with Africa during the same year, which amounted to AED264.2 billion. This positions Dubai as a gateway for American companies aiming to enter African markets, he said.

Lootah added that Dubai’s exports and re-exports to global markets reached AED466 billion during the period 2018–2024, marking total growth exceeding 88 percent and achieving a compound annual growth rate of 11.1 percent.

This, he said, reflects Dubai’s readiness to provide a supportive and competitive business environment that enables American companies to benefit from its advantages and expand effectively into regional and international markets.

He also pointed out that 145 American investors injected around AED3.6 billion into 158 projects within Dubai’s digital economy sectors during the period 2020–2024, underscoring the rapid growth of this pivotal sector and the confidence of American investors in Dubai’s ability to support innovation and stimulate digital entrepreneurship.

EXPORTS GROW

Meanwhile, Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, Chairman of Dubai Chambers, said the value of Dubai’s exports to the US rose from AED19.1 billion in 2018 to AED34.1 billion in 2024, recording growth of 78.5 percent over seven years and underscoring the strong economic ties between Dubai and the US.

Speaking to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) on the sidelines of the Dubai Business Forum – USA, Al Mansoori noted that Dubai’s imports from the US climbed from approximately AED61 billion in 2018 to AED82.2 billion in 2024, an increase of 34.7 percent.

Dubai Chambers Chairman noted that American investment activity continues to grow steadily in terms of value and number of investment projects, with Dubai attracting 1,474 foreign direct investment projects from the US worth AED79.6 billion during the period from 2015 to 2024.

He added that the tourism and hospitality sector accounted for the largest share of American investment inflows into Dubai during this period with AED28.3 billion, followed by the software and information technology services sector with AED20.2 billion. The business services sector ranked third with AED5.7 billion, the entertainment sector fourth with AED4.8 billion, and the telecommunications sector fifth with AED3.6 billion.

Al Mansoori pointed to the rising confidence of the American business community in Dubai’s economic outlook, with the total number of active American companies registered with Dubai Chamber of Commerce increasing by 224 percent between the end of 2021, when 1,139 companies were registered, and the end of last September, when the number reached 3,690 active companies, in less than four years.

Regarding the opening of Dubai Chambers’ first representative office in New York, he confirmed that the office marks a pivotal step towards deepening business ties with one of the world’s most important financial and commercial centres. The step aligns with efforts to strengthen Dubai’s stature as a global hub for business and investment and to reinforce its presence in the expansion plans of American companies.

On the importance of the Dubai Business Forum in New York, he noted that Dubai Chambers seeks through the forum to attract high-quality American investments and highlight the opportunities offered by the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) to build a diversified economy based on knowledge, advanced technologies and sustainability. The forum also gives American investors and entrepreneurs a direct opportunity to explore the advantages Dubai offers.