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Data released by the Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment at Digital Dubai on October 18, 2026, showed the emirate’s real gross domestic product reached Dh473 billion in the first half of the year, down 2.3 percent from Dh484 billion in the same period of 2025. The establishment’s figures placed GDP at current prices at Dh505 billion, reflecting a marginal 0.2 percent increase that highlighted differing performances across economic activities. Strategic sectors maintained positive momentum amid global economic pressures, with the data underscoring Dubai’s diversified base.
Financial and insurance activities expanded 8.8 percent in real terms to Dh65.9 billion during the January-to-June period, according to the establishment. That growth lifted the sector’s share of the economy to 14 percent from 12.5 percent a year earlier, while the same activities rose 8.1 percent at current prices to Dh64 billion. The establishment’s assessment found the financial sector’s rising weight reflected broader resilience in services-oriented segments.
Human health and social work activities recorded the strongest expansion with 14.3 percent real growth, pushing value added to Dh6.2 billion compared with Dh5.4 billion in the first half of 2025, the data indicated. Information and communication activities grew 2.7 percent to Dh24.7 billion while construction advanced 2.4 percent to Dh33.2 billion. Electricity, gas, water supply and waste management activities increased 5.4 percent in constant prices to Dh10.2 billion.
Wholesale and retail trade remained the largest contributor to real GDP at 20.5 percent, followed by financial and insurance activities at 14 percent, real estate at 11.8 percent and transportation and storage at 10.7 percent, the Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment reported. These four activities together accounted for more than half of the emirate’s economic output in the period. The rankings illustrate the continued importance of trade and logistics alongside the rising profile of finance and property.
The Dubai performance forms part of wider national trends, with the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre having reported earlier in October that UAE real GDP stood at Dh961.9 billion in the first half of 2026, up 0.4 percent year on year. Non-oil activities grew 1.8 percent under that assessment and accounted for 79.2 percent of the national total, up from 78.1 percent. Financial and insurance activities led national sectoral growth at 14.8 percent.
Earlier Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre data for 2025 placed full-year UAE GDP at Dh1.9 trillion after 6.2 percent growth, providing a baseline against which the latest half-year outcomes can be measured. Dubai’s first-half contraction in real terms occurred as some traditional sectors faced headwinds from regional developments, yet the establishment’s breakdown showed services and construction offsetting broader pressures. The figures arrive as authorities continue monitoring economic indicators to guide diversification efforts.
