Amman, Nov. 12 (Petra) – The Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (Dhaman) reported a 3.5 percent decline in outstanding commitments for insuring investments, financing, and exports to the Arab region, totaling approximately $254 billion by the end of 2024.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Kuwait-based corporation said these commitments represent about 7.6 percent of the global total. Of this, 84 percent covered export credit insurance within the region, 8 percent corresponded to political risk insurance valued at $21 billion, and the remaining 8 percent was allocated to other cross-border insurance operations.

Despite rising geopolitical tensions and regional conflicts in 2024, which negatively affected global trade and investment while creating new insurance opportunities, Dhaman noted that new commitments for insuring financing, investments, and exports to Arab countries recorded a marginal increase of 0.1 percent, reaching approximately $126 billion. These commitments covered 9 percent of total Arab merchandise imports during the year.

Analysis of global and regional trade, investment, and finance insurance trends revealed that Arab countries’ share of total new commitments worldwide declined to 3.9 percent last year. Export credit insurance continued to dominate new commitments at 95 percent, while political risk insurance accounted for 4 percent, with other cross-border operations representing the remainder.

New insurance commitments were concentrated in five Arab countries, collectively accounting for around 79 percent of the total, led by the United Arab Emirates, followed by Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Egypt, and Algeria. Public agencies specializing in trade and investment insurance, including national and multilateral institutions, maintained the largest share of new commitments in 2024, exceeding 58 percent, while private insurers accounted for approximately 42 percent.

The infrastructure, energy, and manufacturing sectors together represented more than 52 percent of all new long-term commitments in the Arab region, with Saudi Arabia alone accounting for over 58 percent in these sectors. Compensation for insurance liabilities in the Arab region decreased by 25 percent, totaling around $534 million, of which approximately 97 percent was linked to export credit insurance, and roughly 87 percent of these payments were made by public agencies.

Dhaman emphasized that, given ongoing geopolitical challenges worldwide, particularly in the Middle East, the corporation aims to strengthen its capacity to manage existing and potential political and economic risks in the region.

Established in 1974, Dhaman is a multilateral institution comprising all Arab states and four joint Arab financial institutions. It provides specialized insurance services against credit and political risks, promoting foreign direct investment flows into Arab countries and supporting Arab trade.

//Petra// AJ