MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
The UAE ranked second in the Global Islamic Economy Indicator (GIEI) 2025, moving up from 4th place in both 2024 and 2023.
The country’s rise places it behind only Malaysia and ahead of Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Bahrain in the annual ranking published in the State of the Global Islamic Economy Report (SGIE) 2025/26 by DinarStandard.
Notably, the UAE claimed the top spot globally in total Islamic economy investment deal value, attracting $1.177 billion across transactions in 2025.
The report said the global Islamic economy is entering a new phase of growth, shifting from demand-driven expansion towards what it described as “halal economy sovereignty”.
“Governments and investors are industrialising halal value chains, digitising trust infrastructure, and scaling Islamic finance rails.”
Consumer spending across key sectors of the Islamic economy, including halal food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, modest fashion, travel, and media and recreation, reached $2.6 trillion in 2024 and is projected to rise to $3.56 trillion by 2029.
Islamic finance assets stood at $5.99 trillion in 2024 and are forecast to expand to $9.72 trillion by 2029, according to the report.
Investment activity across Islamic economy sectors accelerated during 2024 and 2025, with 346 transactions valued at approximately $13.11 billion.
Islamic finance attracted the largest share of investment capital, followed by halal food, media and recreation, and Muslim-friendly travel.
The report highlighted growing opportunities for countries seeking to strengthen domestic halal production and trade.
Member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recorded $421.5 billion in halal-related imports, signaling significant potential for greater regional manufacturing and intra-OIC trade integration.
Among consumer sectors, Muslim-friendly travel was identified as the fastest-growing market, with spending projected to increase from $249 billion in 2024 to $424 billion by 2029.
Halal food remained the largest consumer segment, valued at $1.53 trillion in 2024 and expected to reach $2.06 trillion by the end of the decade.
The report also identified emerging growth opportunities across the Islamic economy, including artificial intelligence-enabled halal certification, blockchain-based traceability systems, Shariah-compliant digital finance, digital pilgrimage services, localised halal manufacturing, clean-label cosmetics, digital-native modest fashion brands and culturally aligned media platforms.
Its findings further pointed to a growing influence of value-driven consumer behaviour.
An analysis of more than 26,800 Instagram and Facebook posts over 86 million social media engagements and more than 9,300 posts on X showed sustained consumer preference for ethical, local and alternative brands.