The Middle East Industry

Saudi Arabia’s petrochemicals industry is about to get a massive boost, with a new $20bn plant in the works and extensive state spending on infrastructure set to further improve the nation’s logistics backbone. Before the full benefits are realised, however, the sector may have to endure a down period as the recovery of the global economy continues to falter.

Abu Dhabi is looking to increase the role industry plays in its burgeoning economy, stepping up investments in leading manufacturing sectors with an eye to building export markets in the medium term and laying the foundation for a more advanced industrial base in the longer run.

From Saudi Arabia to Qatar, governments across the Gulf region are ramping up spending on building projects, with this likely to generate a host of opportunities for Ras Al Khaimah’s construction materials industry, a mainstay of the local economy.

In an effort to develop local businesses and provide more job opportunities, the Omani government is actively supporting new initiatives to promote domestically manufactured products.

Kuwait’s ambition to become a leading trading centre for the region took a step forward earlier this month, when the foundation stone for the new Mubarak Al Kabir port was laid, at a ceremony attended by Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah.

Although it is a relatively newcomer to the local economy, Abu Dhabi’s aerospace industry is proving admirably nimble in its development. As part of the emirate’s long-term development plan, Economic Vision 2030, which was released in early 2009, policy experts highlighted aerospace as one of the many areas in which they envisage future growth, with this expected to play a key role in efforts to diversify the economy away from its traditional mainstay, hydrocarbons.