The volume of trade between Arab countries and China amounted to US$142.6 billion in the first nine months of this year, according to ArabianBusiness.com.
The figure represents a significant increase on last year when the year-end total reached $145.4 billion.
Lon John, the vice rector of Chinese University of International Business and Economics said in a seminar that total trade between China and the Arab world was likely to hit $190 billion for the whole of 2011.
He said China was considered as one of the most important trading partners to Arab countries, having risen from just $36.4 billion seven y ears ago, Saudi Press Agency reported.
In May, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) said in a report that China is expected to be the GCC’s most important economic partner by 2020.
The emergence of China and India and the growing economic importance of sub-Saharan Africa presented massive opportunities for the GCC, the report said.
As well as China, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and India will remain important as providers of technology and know-how for GCC states, the report said.
Globally, emerging markets are seen driving growth in the years ahead. Around two-thirds of the world’s economic growth will be generated by emerging markets in the next five years, according to EIU forecasts.
By 2015, emerging markets are projected to account for 41 percent of global GDP, compared to an estimated 31 percent in 2011.
Source: ArabianBusiness
