Economy
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ECONOMY
In the past, Dubai was an important city because most of the Western manufacture were destinated in its port called Jebel Ali port. That’s why most of the city grew near the port, and that was maintained until the 1980s. Until that decade, the exportation of gold from Dubai to India were such an important economical point. This is the reason of the second name, the City of Gold used to designate Dubai.
Taking into account that some years ago, there weren’t almost any modern technologies and the industries and new buildings were not as developed as nowadays are, we can say that Dubai is a new city.
Dubai has grown as city because of the support of the oil and natural gas industry. Dubai produces an average of 11.000 m3 of oil per day, and that-so said that those oil reserves may be exhausted in 20 years. The most important countries of oil exportation are India, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and Switzerland.
Apart from the oil industry, technology is a big influence in Dubai-s economy, and that-s why it exists a part of the city called Dubai Internet and Media City, with free zones throughout it.
TURISM
Nowadays Dubai is the 7th most visited city all over the world, that’s why tourism is a very important factor in it’s economy because each year this city receives over 15 million visits of tourists. Most of them take advantage of the trip to the Emirates to go shopping to Dubai, that has been called the "shopping capital of the Middle East".
We can find 70 different shopping centres through the city, including the famous Dubai Mall, the largest shopping centre in all the world. The 1.200 shops there, including boutiques and jewelleries, the Aquarium and Underwater Zoo and the Ice Rink have turned the Dubai Mall one of the “must’s” of the city.
