Bahrain Economy

Compared to the countries of the Persian Gulf, these islands have always enjoyed a certain prosperity: the presence of numerous freshwater springs allows for flourishing agriculture (dates, tomatoes, citrus fruits and other fruits, rice, vegetables); this, which was once associated with a decent breeding, has however suffered, as well as the competition from other sectors, the growing salinity of the soil; the shoals of pearl oysters are among the richest in the Persian Gulf (the relative fishing is however clearly in decline today); finally, the strategic position favors maritime trade, already relevant since ancient times. The discovery, which took place in 1932 in Awali, on the island of Bahrain, and the exploitation of oil have radically transformed the country’s economy; however, this sector has given cause for concern, partly linked to the fall in prices on the international market but above all derived from the prospect of an imminent depletion of the fields, which we tried to remedy, on the one hand, also by resorting to policies of conservation and containment of production, as well as the use of other resources; on the other hand, by relaunching the search for submarine fields N and W of the archipelago. More than oil production is actually the large Awali refinery, one of the largest in the Middle East, which processes mostly crude oil from Saudi Arabia. In addition to the sectors related to the extraction and processing of oil, the secondary sector is also active above all in the chemical, petrochemical and metallurgical fields, with an aluminum foundry that has reached a level of world rank.

According to allcountrylist, the industrialization process of Bahrain is part of the economic and social development of the country, which in addition to its numerous food complexes (including one for fish processing), cement factories and modern manufacturing industries, has invested in the sector of telecommunications (to guarantee the country its role as an important financial center) and the construction of a seawater desalination plant in Hidd, powered by a new power plant. Further sources of wealth derive from the exploitation of natural gas (also used in the production of electricity), and above all financial activities, stimulated in 1975 by the decision to allow it to be carried out under the offshore: since then Bahrain has been one of the channels for the investment of Arab petrodollars in the world market. Based on this role, the establishment of a scholarship to serve the wider surrounding region was approved (a common university was also built for the same purpose). In 2000, following the censorship by the OECD which has marked Bahrain as one of the “tax havens”, the country has taken steps to enact anti-money laundering regulations. Foreign trade takes place mainly with Saudi Arabia, the United States, Japan and, in the European Union, Great Britain and Germany. The main imported goods are manufactured goods, electrical machinery and for the oil industry, textiles; among those exported, in addition of course to oil and aluminum, there is a high percentage of re-exported goods. Over the past decades, the country’s trade relations and communications to the outside have also drawn considerable impetus from the construction of the highway linking Saudi Arabia to Bahrain (1986), which has thus ceased to be properly a ‘ Island. Free of railways, the country has an efficient system of infrastructures linked to road transport, in addition to the commercial port of Mina Sulman, the oil terminal of Sitra and the airport of Al Muharraq. The breakdown of the active population (overall equal to more than half of the total) indicates the good degree of development achieved by the country: only a small part of the residents of Bahrain are employed in traditional activities, agriculture and fishing, more than half work in industry (oil, construction, manufacturing, etc.) and the remainder is used in the tertiary sector. The GDP recorded in 2018 was 38,291 ml US $, settling around a variation of about 1.8%. Wealth too settling around a variation of approximately 1.8%. Wealth too settling around a variation of approximately 1.8%. Wealth too per capita of the residents has undergone a marked increase reaching 25851 in 2018.