diff --git a/dotnet-local.cmd b/dotnet-local.cmd
index d1c21fbc0493..24cdebefbe06 100644
--- a/dotnet-local.cmd
+++ b/dotnet-local.cmd
@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@
 @echo off
+setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
 SET ROOT=%~dp0
 IF EXIST "%ROOT%\bin\dotnet\dotnet.exe" (
-    SET DOTNET_ROOT=%ROOT%\bin\dotnet
-    SET PATH=%DOTNET_ROOT%;%PATH%
+    SET "DOTNET_ROOT=%ROOT%\bin\dotnet"
+    SET "PATH=!DOTNET_ROOT!;%PATH%"
     call "%ROOT%\bin\dotnet\dotnet.exe" %*
 ) ELSE (
     echo "You must build MAUI first. Please see '.github/DEVELOPMENT.md' for details."