A senior official stated that, in a testament to the economic strength and diversification of the region, trade between Gulf Cooperation Council states was estimated to be $1.5 trillion in 2024, placing the region as the sixth-largest globally with 3.2 percent of the world trade.
Kuwait News Agency reported that, addressing the 61st preparatory meeting of GCC trade ministry undersecretaries, Khalid Ali Al-Sunaidi, assistant secretary-general, economic and development affairs, GCC General Secretariat, announced that the bloc registered a total of $110 billion trade surplus, the third largest in the world.
The progress highlights the fact that GCC is a financially stable and strategically aligned bloc despite various challenges like the fluctuation of oil prices, the slowdown of the global economy, and geopolitical tensions.
Al-Sunaidi highlighted the fact that the GCC trade is a major contributor to the diversification of the economies, as well as making the economies become competitive and providing increased investment and innovation opportunities.
KUNA said, “He noted that intra-GCC merchandise trade reached around $146 billion in 2024, with an annual growth rate of 9.08 percent compared to 2023, and a ten-year average annual growth rate of non-oil goods of 5.3 percent.”
According to al-Sunaidi, the Secretariat observes that the future of GCC trade depends on institutional and legislative integration, by developing unified trade policies, revising common legal and regulatory frameworks, and easing the movement of goods and services.
The agency reported that he also focused on the fact that the Secretariat was committed to helping countries transform their trade systems digitally, which will turn intra-GCC trade not into exchanging commodities but into productive and economic integration.
Kuna informed that the senior official mentioned that the expansion of the intra-GCC trade aids in maximizing comparative advantages, forming mutual production and supply chains, and integrating the groundwork of GCC economic integration.
He continued that this integration is believed to be one of the main avenues towards holistic and sustainable development in the region.
Al-Sunaidi also observed that negotiations of free trade agreements are also a concern of the Secretariat and explained it as a strategic opportunity to expand access to the market, diversify trade partners, and get quality investments to make the GCC an active hub in the global trade system.
The preparatory meeting discussed the progress made in a number of committees, such as domestic and foreign trade, small and medium enterprises, consumer protection, and the GCC Secretariat General Patent Office.
The Saudi Press Agency stated that it also prepared the 69th meeting of the GCC Ministerial Committee on Trade Cooperation, which will take place on October 29 at Kuwait City.
