The United States and United Arab Emirates share a strong trade and commercial partnership. The U.A.E. has been the largest market for U.S. goods and services in the Middle East for the last 15 years. Key U.A.E. entities, such as ADIA and Mubadala Investment Company, heavily invest and create jobs in the U.S. market. Commercial collaboration is increasingly multi-faceted and innovation-driven reflecting the U.A.E.’s economic diversification agenda.
The key drivers of growth in the U.S.-U.A.E. economic relationship are the advanced technology and artificial intelligence (AI), life sciences and healthcare, renewable energy, sustainable manufacturing, financial services, and space sectors.
U.S.-U.A.E. Bilateral Trade
Bilateral trade between the U.A.E. and the U.S. in 2023 totaled
$31.4 billion
Total trade in the first six months of 2024 eclipsed $16.9 billion
U.S. exports of goods and services to the U.A.E. in 2023 totaled
$24.8 billion
This resulted in an $18.3 billion trade surplus for the United States (fourth largest trade surplus globally).
Number of American jobs that U.S. exports to the U.A.E. supports
166,000
The U.A.E. trades with all
50 states
In 2023, the U.S. exported the most goods to the U.A.E. from
California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Georgia
In 2023, the U.S. imported the most goods from the U.A.E. to
New York, California, Texas, New Jersey, and Florida
Growth in bilateral trade over the last 10 years
U.S. has the fourth largest trade surplus globally with the U.A.E.
|
Country
|
U.S. Trade Surplus
|
|---|---|
|
Netherlands
|
$43 billion
|
|
Hong Kong
|
$24 billion
|
|
Australia
|
$18 billion
|
|
United Arab Emirates
|
$18 billion
|
Growth in bilateral trade over the last 10 years
Total U.A.E. investments in the Unites States exceed $1 trillion and include investments from these key U.A.E. entities:
ADIA
45-60% of ADIA’s Assets Under Management are in North America.
Mubadala Investment Company
Mubadala Investment Company has invested over $100 billion in the United States.
GlobalFoundries
GlobalFoundries is Mubadala’s single largest investment, and it is the largest private investment in New York State history. GF’s Fab 8 facility, located in Saratoga County, New York, employs nearly 3,000 people and supports 15,000 indirect jobs in the region.
Gulftainer
In 2014, Gulftainer signed a 35-year agreement to operate a terminal at Port Canaveral, Florida, which now serves as a cargo facility for the U.S. space industry and the U.S. Air Force base on Ascension Island.
ADNOC
ADNOC is an investor in the RioGrande LNG (RGLNG) Project, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in Cameron County, Texas. The project is the largest privately funded infrastructure project in Texas.
Masdar
Masdar’s portfolio in the U.S. currently consists of four utility-scale wind projects in Texas and New Mexico and five solar projects in California. Two of the solar projects, Big Beau and Desert Harvest, include battery energy storage systems. Masdar is also joint owner of Terra-Gen, one of the largest independent renewable energy producers in the U.S.
MGX
MGX, along with Microsoft and Blackrock, is a partner on an AI infrastructure investment fund that aims to mobilize up to $100 billion to enhance the future of AI. This includes building data centers in the United States. MGX has separately invested heavily in U.S. AI companies and is a founding member of the Stargate Project, which plans to invest $500 billion in AI infrastructure in the United States.
G42
G42’s U.S. footprint includes an engineering office in California and super-computer clusters in California, Texas, and Minnesota.
DAMAC
In January 2025, President Trump announced that DAMAC will invest at least $20 billion in U.S. data centers. DAMAC is also developing a luxury condominium project in Miami, Florida slated for completion in 2029.
U.S. Investment in U.A.E.
U.S. Investment in the U.A.E. is robust due to the more than 1,500 U.S. firms that have a presence in the U.A.E. Key highlights below:
Wynn Resorts
($3.9B)
Wynn is developing a $3.9 billion integrated resort on Al Marjan Island, Ras Al Khaimah.
Uber/Careem
($3.1B)
In 2020, Uber acquired Careem, a Dubai-based ride-hailing service, for $3.1 billion.
Amazon/Souq.com
($580M)
Amazon acquired Souq.com, an e-commerce company in the U.A.E., for $580 million in 2017. The acquisition made Amazon the market leader in the Middle East.
Microsoft/G42
($1.5B)
In April 2024, Microsoft and G42 announced a strategic partnership that includes a $1.5 billion investment from Microsoft in G42 to accelerate AI development and global expansion.
