The trade relationship between the EU and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been growing rapidly over the past five to ten years. In fact, the UAE was the EU’s largest exporter in the Middle East and the 11th largest export market globally in 2010, just behind the likes of India, Brazil and South Korea.
Emirates and the EU are major contributors to each other’s economic and business strength. In particular, services to regional cities and to non-traditional points in the EU have created new commercial opportunities for EU exporters and for in-bound tourism.
Emirates’ relationship with European aerospace suppliers provides a major stimulus to EU business growth, research and development as well as employment. For example, Emirates is the biggest purchaser of the Airbus A380 (with 90 orders) and one of the largest customers of the A350 aircraft. The A380 Emirates contract alone supports many tens of thousands of direct jobs in the UK, France, Germany and across several EU Member States, while almost 5,000 EU nationals are employed by Emirates in Dubai and in Europe - points sometimes forgotten by those who argue for unwarranted protection for national flag carriers or claim competition is bad for Europe.
| Emirates Airbus fleet | Number of aircraft |
|---|
| Current | 60 |
| On order | 145 (value at list prices – EUR 36.26 billion) |
| Total | 205 |
The EU’s progress as a dynamic knowledge-based economy requires continued investment in European businesses and the stimulation of research and development. Through its relationship with major European innovators such as Airbus and flagship technology programmes such as the A380, Emirates is taking an active role in this process. Additionally, over EUR 640 million is injected into the EU economy each year through Emirates’ direct expenditure, as well as through its wider EU marketing spend.
| Emirates EU investments | EUR million |
|---|
| Direct expenditure 2008/09 (fuel, over-flight costs, aircraft landing and handling costs, crew layover costs and overheads etc) | 610 |
| Sports sponsorship total contract value (Golf, cricket, horse racing and football - Arsenal FC in the UK, AC Milan in Italy, Paris Saint Germain in France, Olympiacos CFP in Greece and Hamburger SV in Germany) | 210 |
| Advertising spend 2008/09 | 30 |
Beyond passenger transport, Emirates’ SkyCargo division also plays a key role in facilitating Europe’s trade with the wider world. Total EU exports to the Gulf region totalled over EUR 57 billion in 2009. In terms of cargo shipped, SkyCargo uplifted 242,000 tonnes for export from the EU in 2010/11. Goods shipped include German machine parts and biotech products, British pharmaceuticals, French wine and foodstuff, Italian textiles and Austrian electronics.