ABU DHABI: Peruvian gold exports to the UAE reached $233 million (Dh855 million) in the first half of 2016, a 155 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2015. Total gold shipments jumped from 42 kilograms in 2015 to reach more than 7 metric tons in 2016, making the UAE the fourth largest destination for Peru’s gold exports, after Switzerland, Canada and USA. Peru ranks as the world’s sixth biggest producer of gold and is the largest producer of the commodity in Latin America. Gold is the second most exported product for Peru after copper ore.
“Peru’s mining capabilities are top class. Although we are world leaders in the production of base and precious metals, only 13 per cent of our territory has been explored and only half of that has been mined,” said Alvaro Silva-Santisteban, Director of the Trade and Investment Office of Peru in the UAE. Commenting on the significant increase in imports of Peruvian gold by the UAE, Silva-Santisteban attributes recent commercial activities undertaken by Peru’s Trade and Investment Office as a contributing factor.
“Gold counts as one of the major re-exports for the UAE so demand for the commodity has always been high. The work of our office in generating the correct links and supporting commercial missions, and the appropriated international procedures Peruvian exporters follow, has likely influenced recent trade results,” he said.
