The wealth of the country is based on oil and gas output which is about 30% of GDP. Oil was discovered here in the 1950s. It has generated about 9% of the world's total wealth from oil reserves. In last 20 years, the government has increased spending on job creation and infrastructure expansion. It is developing as a centre for tourism, trade and commerce. In 2004, the country signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with Washington and later in the same year it agreed to undertake negotiations toward a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US. UAE is the 3rd most important re-export centre after Hong kong and Singapore.

In the list of 11 countries in the Middle East UAE topped in terms of the travel and tourism sector's contribution to the gross domestic product, followed by Jordan and Lebanon, according to a latest World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) report.The UAE remains in pole position with a GDP contribution of 22.6 per cent and growth rate of 13.5 per cent in 2008.

The Middle East travel and tourism sector is expected to generate revenue of $456 billion over the next 10 years, according to the report.