UAE investment law to apply selectively, won't hurt locals -officials | Reuters

UAE investment law to apply selectively, won't hurt locals -officials | Reuters:

A new law allowing 100 percent foreign ownership of companies in the United Arab Emirates will only apply to some sectors of the economy, limiting the risk that it could disrupt existing business, Dubai investment officials told Reuters.

The UAE cabinet, chaired by Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, said in May that it would permit 100 percent foreign ownership of some UAE-based businesses, up from the current 49 percent limit, by the end of 2018.

Few details of the law have been revealed so far. But Raed Safadi, chief economic advisor at Dubai’s Department of Economic Development, said on Monday that it would only apply to “strategic sectors” of the economy.