World economy to pick up in 2016: UAE

It also forecasted a pick-up in oil prices

The global economy is expected to improve by 2016 as Asian countries are growing faster, the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) minister of economy said.

"The world economy is definitely going to pick up. For 2016, or the second half of next year, the expectation is that the economy of many parts of the world is going to rise," Xinhua quoted Sultan Al-Mansouri as saying at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Summit on the Global Agenda 2015, that kicked off here on Sunday.

He said the current oil price level of around $50 per barrel is a challenge for the UAE and the rest of the world alike.

He said that there is also a forecast that a pick-up in the price of oil would take place.

The UAE has a clear plan to reduce the share of oil in the economy by 10% within the next 15 to 20 years, he said.

Currently, oil stands for 29% of the gross domestic product of the UAE that harbours 7% of the world's known oil reserves.

Last week, Masood Ahmed, director of Middle East and Central Asia at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said the UAE would record a fiscal deficit of 3.5% of gross domestic product.

It could increase further in the coming years if oil prices do not pick up significantly.