UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, His Excellency Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, met with the Vietnam Business Council in the United Arab Emirates to discuss how the business communities of both countries can fully capitalize on the opportunities arising from the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), signed in October 2024.
During his discussions, HE Al Zeyoudi emphasized Vietnam’s value to the UAE as a trading partner. In the first half of 2025, bilateral non-oil trade reached $7.02 billion, a 16.9 percent increase on the same period in 2024, and a quarter-on-quarter rise of 6.4 percent.
This accelerates the growth recorded in 2024, which climbed 4 percent across the year to reach $12.6 billion, representing a 54.3 percent rise since 2019. The results maintain Vietnam’s status as the UAE’s largest non-oil trading partner in the ASEAN region.
Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi UAE Minister – Foreign Trade
“Both the UAE and Vietnam are dedicated to achieving mutual growth by expanding opportunities for our private sectors. Our CEPA has been designed to open up new markets for our exporters and increase access to global supply chains, and it is incumbent on both nations to build the connections to fully leverage its potential. We have strong foundations to build on, with our business communities already benefitting from extensive bilateral exchange, and we are now well placed to develop a broad range of new opportunities for investors, entrepreneurs and businesses.”
The minister further said that, “We are already seeing the benefits of close collaboration. From supporting Vietnam’s logistics infrastructure, including Saigon’s Premier Container Terminal in Ho Chi Minh City and new cargo services across the Mekong Delta, we have set a course for further growth and greater prosperity, and look forward to adding to these key investments in the months and years ahead.”
The UAE enjoys robust and steadily growing economic ties with the ASEAN region, underscored by the successful conclusion of Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) with key nations including Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
Image Via: Vietnam Business Council | Cropped by GBN
These strategic agreements have played a pivotal role in propelling the UAE’s non-oil foreign trade with ASEAN countries to reach $37.7 billion in 2024, reflecting a 4.2 percent increase compared to 2023, and a significant 16.8 percent rise over 2022.
This sustained growth highlights the increasing importance of ASEAN in the UAE’s global trade strategy. In 2024, ASEAN nations accounted for 4.6 percent of the UAE’s total non-oil trade with the world, and an impressive 11.3 percent of its non-oil trade with non-Arab Asian countries, reinforcing the region’s status as a key economic partner in the UAE’s diversification and international trade agenda.
