Industrial investments across the GCC total about US$426 billion, with nearly 22,000 factories in operation, according to data from the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC-Stat) as of July 2026.
The industrial sector employs more than 1.7 million people. Manufacturing contributed roughly 13.0 percent of the GCC’s gross domestic product in 2025, highlighting its role in economic diversification and the growth of non-oil activity.
Around 40 percent of industrial investments are concentrated in a handful of key industries, including plastics, refined petroleum products, aluminium, gaseous fuels, and iron and steel. These sectors form the foundation for manufacturing and intermediate industries and support the integration of industrial value chains.
Industrial products account for approximately 69 percent of total GCC exports. The main items include petroleum gases and hydrocarbons, petroleum oils, motor vehicles, organic compounds, aluminium, ships and boats, and electrical machinery and equipment.
On the import side, China is the region’s largest source, supplying around 20 percent of the total. Major imports include equipment and machinery, motor vehicles, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, and plastics, sourced from a diverse range of markets.
The figures point to an expanding and diversifying industrial base, though the scale of activity varies among member states in terms of investment and factory numbers. This is driving efforts to expand production capacity, develop value chains, deepen industrial integration, localise industries and make Gulf products more competitive in global markets.
News Source: Emirates News Agency
