(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed on Tuesday a
free trade agreement, the first of its kind between Israel and an
Arab country, Trend reports citing Xinhua .
The trade deal, signed by Israeli Minister of Economy Orna
Barbivay and her UAE counterpart Abdulla Bin Touq Al-Marri in
Dubai, is expected to eliminate tariffs on 96 percent of products,
including food, agriculture, cosmetics, medical equipment and
medicines, said the Israeli Economy Ministry in a statement.
The agreement also covers regulation, government procurement,
e-commerce and intellectual property, it said.
Trade between Israel and the UAE reached 1.22 billion U.S.
dollars in 2021, and already 672 million dollars in the first four
months of 2022, according to Israel's Central Bureau of
Statistics.
The bilateral trade mainly includes diamonds, automation and
electrical equipment, electronics, vehicles, jewellery, minerals
and oils.
The Israel-UAE trade deal aims to help raise the annual
bilateral trade to more than 10 billion dollars in five years,
according to both Israeli and the UAE ministries.
'The comprehensive economic partnership agreement will create a
new model for constructive cooperation between the countries of the
region,' UAE Economy Minister Abdulla Bin Touq Al-Marri was quoted
as saying in a statement issued by his ministry.
For her part, Barbivay said the deal 'is expected to strengthen
trade between the two countries, remove barriers and promote new
opportunities and business partnerships, which will form a solid
basis for our common path.'
Israel and the UAE, which signed a historic normalization
agreement in September 2020, launched the free trade negotiations
in November 2021.
MENAFN31052022000187011040ID1104302828
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.