NEW YORK, United States – Anthony O’Sullivan, Managing Partner of Ernst & Young EY UAE, confirmed that Dubai is today one of the most attractive cities in the world in terms of investment and economic opportunities.
He stressed that the emirate’s location in the heart of a region witnessing rapid growth gives it a strategic position in attracting business and expanding its scope globally.
O’Sullivan explained that Dubai is a city designed to support the growth of companies and enable them to expand.
In addition, the UAE is one of the fastest growing economies in the region, which enhances its attractiveness to investors and international institutions.
He pointed out that the study of the economic attractiveness of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, conducted annually by “Ernst & Young”, continuously shows that the UAE accounts for the largest percentage of foreign direct investment flows in the region, and that the bulk of these investments go to the Emirate of Dubai specifically, which reflects its economic strength and global competitiveness.
Regarding the UAE’s economic growth expectations during 2025 and the most active sectors, he stressed that growth will continue across various key sectors, most notably logistics, real estate, and financial services.
He added that new sectors in the digital economy, such as digital assets, artificial intelligence and data, are witnessing increasing interest from global companies that view Dubai as an ideal base to move towards growth in these future industries.
Projects in Dubai
On the other hand, O’Sullivan explained, in his speech during the forum, that 6.2% of new foreign investment projects in the world during 2024 were in Dubai.
This reflects its position as an attractive global destination for investments in the sectors of technology, advanced manufacturing, international trade, artificial intelligence, and healthcare.
He added that the UAE’s partnerships with major American companies such as “Microsoft”, ”Qualcom” and ”AWS” have contributed to building an advanced digital infrastructure in the fields of technology, artificial intelligence and data.
Which made the UAE a global center for technological innovation.
He stated that Emirati investments in the United States are witnessing rapid growth, citing the announcement by Emirates International Aluminum Company “Emirates International Aluminum” to invest $4 billion in a huge project to develop aluminum production facilities in America.
In addition to Emirates Airlines’ agreement “with Boeing” worth $52 billion to purchase new aircraft.
The managing partner of Ernst & Young “EY” in the UAE stressed that the partnership between the two countries represents a global model for economic cooperation based on trust and openness, looking forward to its continued growth in the coming decades in the fields of artificial intelligence, clean energy, climate technologies and advanced industries.
