Over the last decade, the Middle East region, and in particular the GCC countries, has established itself as a key driver of growth in several sectors. Market indicators and specific mega projects include:

• Saudi Arabia is the 9th largest trading partner of the United States with a bilateral trade of almost $80 billion in 2013 and is also the 20th largest destination for U.S. exports.
• The Saudi private sector has been the key driver behind the stronger non-oil sector growth, with an annual growth rate close to 7 percent since 2000. The country has benefited enormously from oil and gas reserves that have generated vast financial liquidity. As a result, there are currently about $960 billion worth of projects planned or under way in Saudi Arabia.
• The Emirate of Abu Dhabi is developing a $10 billion urban transit system -light rail and below ground subway, a national railroad network and a nuclear energy industry.
• Over $40 billion of developments of Dubai’s new Al Maktoum airport and adjacent logistics, commercial, residential and recreational sites, and over 100 new hotels and multiple venues for the 2020 World Expo.
• $22.5 billion Riyadh Metro, along with rail schemes in Mecca, Jeddah, Medina and Dammam, promises to transform transport infrastructure.
• Demand for power generation throughout the region will continue to climb over the next five to ten years on the back of a rapidly growing population, and resulting high investments in social and physical infrastructure.
• Over the past 10 years U.S. exports to Qatar have grown by over 700%.
• Qatar plans to spend over $250 billion on physical infrastructure over the next five years.
• Projects worth US$2 billion, including the expansion of Baku’s metro system and the Gazakh Cement Plant, which has a production capacity of 3 million tonnes per year
• Istanbul's undersea rail tunnel linking Asia with Europe -the world's deepest undersea tunnel at 185 feet- shuttles 1.5 million people a day.

The Region's Exports and Imports of Goods and Services with the World, by Commodity or Type of Service, 2011

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Trade and investment between the Middle East-Eurasia region and the United States is relatively limited, suggesting scope for deeper economic ties. U.S. trade with the region's countries accounts for a small share of total U.S. trade: $193 billion, about 5% of the U.S. total, in 2011. U.S.-ME trade primarily consists of exchanging a wide variety of U.S. goods for crude oil, which is then processed and refined into such petroleum end-products as gasoline, diesel fuel, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas.

Closely linked to trade is Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The Middle East-Eurasia region accounts for a small share of global FDI by U.S. firms (“outward” FDI). In 2011, the total stock of U.S. outward FDI was $4.2 trillion. Of this, about only $56 billion, or 1%, was invested in the Middle East-Eurasia region.

The Region's Major Trading Partners, 2011

Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF), Direction of Trade Statistics

Notes: Merchandise data only; services data not available

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