UAE Becomes a Key Gateway for the Belt and Road Initiative
The 18th UAE Intermediate Goods Trade – CHINA (DUBAI) EXPORT BRAND JOINT EXPO
As the global trade landscape undergoes rapid transformation, China’s new-quality productive forces—empowered by technological advancement—are knocking on the doors of the Middle East market. According to the exhibition organizing committee, the 18th UAE Intermediate Goods Trade – CHINA (DUBAI) EXPORT BRAND JOINT EXPO (referred to as the “UAE Exhibition”), hosted by the Department of Commerce of Zhejiang Province and organized by Meorient International Exhibition, will grandly open on June 11, 2025, at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
Bringing together nearly 700 enterprises from 12 provinces across China, this trade event not only stands as the largest Chinese self-hosted exhibition in the Middle East, but also serves as a critical hub for connecting China’s advanced productive capabilities with the Middle East’s trillion-dollar market. The “Quality Zhejiang Goods” delegation features 66 companies across 100 booths, showcasing a powerful presence.
China-Arab Trade Tops USD 100 Billion
UAE Becomes a Strategic Platform for the Belt and Road Initiative
Data shows that China has remained the UAE’s largest trading partner for several consecutive years. In 2024, bilateral trade in goods between China and the UAE reached USD 101.838 billion, marking a 7.2% year-on-year increase, demonstrating sustained trade resilience amid global economic fluctuations. As one of the world’s largest free trade ports, Dubai leverages its network of over 100 free trade agreements to extend its re-export reach across the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and South Asia — making it a strategic launchpad for Chinese enterprises exploring emerging markets.
Today, demand in the Middle East for Chinese products is evolving from traditional light industry to high-end manufacturing. Intelligent customization systems for home furnishings, green and low-carbon technologies in building materials, and AI-interactive features in home appliances and 3C electronics are now among the top procurement priorities. According to the organizers, as the Belt and Road Initiative aligns more deeply with the UAE’s “Next 50-Year Development Plan,” the structure of China-UAE trade is shifting from “product export” to a model of “technology + service + standards export,” with this exhibition’s product matrix aligning precisely with that trend.
AI-Powered Exhibition Experience
Digital Tools Double Trade Matching Efficiency
Notably, this edition of the exhibition sees a full upgrade in intelligent services. The self-developed “AI Smart Expo” system and AI-powered smart glasses by Meorient will make their debut in the Middle East, offering six scenario-based applications including AI Smart Matchmaking, AI Translation, and AI Smart Notes. These tools provide exhibitors with end-to-end solutions from accurate buyer matching to real-time multilingual translation. Estimates show that compared to traditional exhibition models, these digital tools can improve participation and lead generation efficiency by 200%, enabling Chinese companies to conduct more targeted and efficient trade in the Middle East market.
“We aim to empower every exhibitor with technology, helping them establish a ‘digital trade base’ in Dubai,” said a representative of the organizer. In addition to the physical exhibition, an online digital showroom will also be launched simultaneously, creating a ‘3-day onsite + 365-day online’ hybrid model for long-term trade engagement, further deepening the penetration of China’s new-quality productive forces into the Middle East market.
As the curtain rises on this event, a trade spectacle that blends “Made in China” and “Intelligent Manufacturing from China” is poised to draw a new blueprint for the global expansion of China’s innovative productivity — with technology as the brush and market as the canvas — across the Middle Eastern landscape.