Dubai Chamber Expects the Business Environment in Dubai to Gain Positive Momentum in the Third Quarter Of 2021

According to a survey conducted by the Dubai Chamber, the business environment of Dubai may witness a positive momentum in the third quarter of 2021, as confidence among investors and companies improves ahead of the Expo 2020 Dubai.

Around 66 percent of the participants in the survey said that they expect to see better conditions for businesses during the 3rd quarter, compared to 51 percent who had the same opinion regarding the previous quarter. At the same time, 66 percent of the business leaders surveyed were found to be more optimistic regarding the business environment, compared to 48 percent in the previous quarter.

H.E. Hamad Buamim, CEO of Dubai Chamber, said that these findings demonstrate the success of Dubai in minimizing the impact of COVID-19 through adopting a series of policies and measures as well as launching a number of different initiatives, that have helped in ensuring a favorable environment for businesses to carry out their operations as well as addressing different challenges caused by the pandemic. He also said that Expo 2020 is expected to help Dubai with its economic recovery and boost the Emirate as an appealing location among foreign investors and companies to register companies in Dubai and do business.

The survey also found that expectations of business leaders with regards to factors impacting the business environment and conditions in Q3 have improved significantly when compared to the previous quarter, with the most noteworthy improvements witnessed in the category “financial transactions”. Around 57 percent of the business leaders said that they expect the recovery in oil prices to positively impact the business conditions in the third quarter, while 62 percent of the leaders said that restrictions on travel and trade around the world may pose a threat to the improving business conditions in Dubai. Ahead of Expo 2020, Dubai chamber has also launched Digital Business Solution in collaboration with Google to help businesses manage their online reputation

The survey also revealed that small and medium-sized entities, in particular, were very optimistic about the economy of the emirate in the short term as compared to large corporations operating both regionally and globally, while late payments, debt collection, the high cost of raw materials and strong competition in prices were identified as main issues and challenges that could have an adverse impact on the emirate’s economic situation. 

The results of the survey for the third quarter of 2021 were marked as the highest readings of any such survey since the fourth quarter of the year 2014. This increase in confidence is mainly due to a number of important factors such as growing domestic demand, pro-active approach of government, the progress of vaccination drive, economic stimulus initiatives, and others.