SME Times News Bureau | 03 Nov, 2009
The UAE economy is showing positive movement and the  inflation rate is expected to be up to 3 percent this year, Economy Minister Sultan bin Saeed ll-Mansouri said on Monday, lower than his previous forecast.

"My expectation is we will manage (inflation) between 2.5 to 3 percent this year," Mansouri said on the sidelines of a conference.

In September, he expected the annual inflation rate in the UAE to be around 3.5 percent to 4 percent in 2009, down from 12.3 percent last year.

When asked whether the UAE is firmly on the path to recovery he said: "Yes, definitely at 100 percent."

However, the minister did not want to predict the rate of economic expansion next year, reiterating that his forecast last month for 1.3 percent growth this year.     
    
"The planned investments to be implemented in Abu Dhabi through public and private partnerships in infrastructure, real estate and manufacturing sectors over the medium term are expected to reach $1 trillion," he said.

UAE consumer price growth was at around 2.6-2.9 percent on average so far this year, the minister added.