A two-day tour, which will take in Kuwait,
UAE and Qatar, will see the Chancellor provide personal
assurances of the UK government’s intention to strengthen
relations, trade links and economic ties with Gulf countries.
The trip begins in Kuwait on Wednesday morning, where the
Chancellor is due to meet with senior
political leaders including the Acting Prime Minister,
Finance Minister and Central Bank Governor, as well as the Kuwait
Investment Authority to discuss strengthening trade and
investment opportunities.
In the UAE he will hold talks with Abu Dhabi’s biggest sovereign
wealth funds and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, where BP
signed a major mutual investment agreement only last month.
In Qatar Mr Hammond is set to meet his Finance Minister
counterpart, the Qatar Investment Authority, the Governor of
Qatar Central Bank and hold talks with some of Qatar’s largest
banks and investors.
The visit is part of a series of international trips taken by
senior Government ministers to showcase the UK’s commitment to
forming even stronger global economic, investment and security
ties as we prepare to leave the EU.
The Chancellor's visits build on the Prime Minister’s and Foreign
Secretary’s trips to the Gulf last month.
Speaking after arriving in the Gulf, the Chancellor said:
“As we leave the EU, Britain’s future prosperity requires us to
maintain the strongest possible economic links with our European
neighbours, while enhancing our existing partnerships with the
wider world.
”There is huge potential to expand our economic and investment
relationships with our Gulf allies in the future and in the last
few weeks we’ve seen a number of significant investments into the
UK which are a real vote of confidence that together we can seize
the opportunities that lie ahead.”
Notes to Editors:
Business between the UK and the Gulf continues to grow:
- · UK exports to the
Gulf were over £20.4bn in 2015 – about 4% of total UK exports -
with the UAE and Saudi Arabia the largest export markets.
- · The Gulf is
already home to over 5,000 UK companies, 779 commercial agencies,
and 4,762 British brands in the UAE alone.
- BP have signed a major mutual investment with the Abu Dhabi
National Oil Company on 17 December, making Abu Dhabi a 2%
shareholder in BP and giving BP a 10% share in a 40-year
concession with total resources of 20-30 billion barrels of oil
equivalent.
- · The UK/UAE
Double Taxation Convention will also have effect from this
year, bringing an end to the avoidance of double taxation and
evasion and avoidance on income and capital gain taxes.
