A COMPARATIVE STUDY FOR COMPETITIVENESS OF DATES FROM THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA AND THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES IN THE WORLD MARKET

M.R. Elsabea Alaa
Although the KSA and UAE are the third and the fourth largest world producers of dates, their exports face strong competition in the international market. Dates from both countries suffer from low prices. This has a negative impact not only on the export level but also on the farmers, consequently adversely impacting the balance sheet of the agricultural sector and the Government financial plan. Dates represent the main crop that can help the KSA and UAE decrease the deficiency of the balance sheet of the agricultural sector.
The results show that dates are the most important export crop from the KSA and UAE in the foreign market. Its export value and quantity have increased from year to year. Results show that the KSA and UAE marketing systems of date have a good efficiency and are competitive in the Arabic market but have less competitive ability in the European and American market. The result shows that the competitive ability of the Kingdom’s dates is stronger than Emirate’s dates in general in the Arabic markets, especially in Kuwait and Yemen. Because most of the production of dates in both countries are dried varieties, their production is more suitable for Arabic and Islamic countries. Both the KSA and UAE occupy lower ranks in the competitive ability in European markets. Both the KSA and UAE have a very limited exported quantity of dates to European countries and America. The KSA was the fifth for its market share and rate of penetration in the British market after Israel, Tunisia, Iran and Pakistan. In the French market only about 5 tons are exported Saudi dates. The production of dates for export must be according to special favored characteristics of foreign consumers’ needs. So it is important to focus on consumer’s needs of fresh, dried semi dried or manufactured dates products especially for promising countries such as Islamic, Asian, American and European regions.
The most important competing countries for KSA dates are the UAE, Iran, Pakistan and Tunisia. The results show that the KSA has a price advantage compared to Tunisian dates, but it does not have a price advantage for the UAE, Iran and Pakistan’s dates. The UAE play an important role for exporting and re-exporting dates especially for Asian countries, but it is important to pay more attention to export to European and American countries by activating a complementary strategy with the KSA.
The results of a case study from the KSA, which included 150 farms, 35 traders in the whole market and 20 export companies, confirm the results of previous analysis of secondary data and insures the necessary cooperation of marketing and production for building a complementary strategy between the KSA and the UAE. This strategy must include fresh, dried and manufactured dates and depend on an efficient local and international database.
In reality manufacturing sector of dates in both countries, needs to be more active, especially, for creating new products of dates as an alternative of overseas products. This strategy has to improve technical capabilities, environmental issues, quality management. Therefore, it is important to build a suitable complementary strategy for production and marketing of dates from the KSA and the UAE in local and international markets for removing the negative effect of unorganized competition and decrease the surplus in local markets by opening new markets overseas in the future. This will increase the export price and positively impact not only the export sector but also the farmers, consequently moreover on the Government financial plan for agriculture. Dates represent the main crop that can help the KSA and the UAE decrease the deficiency of the balance sheet of the agricultural sector.
Elsabea Alaa, M.R. (2010). A COMPARATIVE STUDY FOR COMPETITIVENESS OF DATES FROM THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA AND THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES IN THE WORLD MARKET. Acta Hortic. 882, 629-643
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2010.882.71
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2010.882.71
world trade, revealed comparative advantage, competitive advantage, penetration ratio
English

Acta Horticulturae