The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) labor market will grow substantially in 2010 as the country's population soars.

That is according to projections made by the National Human Resources Development and Employment Authority, which claimed that the population will increase by more than a third to 7.56 million from 5.63 million at the end of 2006.

Specifically, the government body also calculated that the UAE had 5.63 million residents in December 2009, which is 18 per cent more than recorded in 2008, Emirates News Agency reported.

However, this forecast contradicts anecdotal evidence suggesting that the economic downturn has led to a significant number of the country's expatriates, which make up 85 per cent of the population, to return home.

Last week, a report conducted by careertunity.com disclosed that the UAE remains in a popular destination among expatriate workers from around the world.

The website suggested that the number of job applications submitted by foreign migrant workers to the Middle Eastern country has surged in the past few months.