Bahrain is an Arab state located in a bay on the Persian Gulf’s southwest coast. Bahrain Island and over thirty other smaller islands make up the archipelago. Although situated in one of the major oil-producing regions of the globe, Bahrain has very few gas stations.

It was the first emirate where oil was discovered (1932). Bahrain’s economy has grown to be among the most diverse in the Persian Gulf. Bahrain is susceptible to changes in the global oil market because, like other Arab nations in the Persian Gulf, its economy has mostly focused on the extraction of natural gas, crude oil, and petroleum products. Bahrain, however, has expanded upon its long history of trade and transportation. In terms of the development of manufacturing and commercial and financial services, it has outperformed several other Gulf states. The non-oil industry comprises light manufacturing, petrochemicals, ship maintenance, and aluminium refining.

The Global Financial Centres Index published by the City of London ranked Bahrain as the financial centre with the highest rate of growth in the world in 2008. The development in the area caused by the need for oil has boosted Bahrain’s banking and financial services industry, especially Islamic banking. Producing and processing petroleum is Bahrain’s most exported goods, making up 60% of export earnings, 70% of government income, and 11% of the country’s GDP.

Bahrain is the home of various international corporations and is seeing the progress of several large-scale industrial projects due to its advanced communication and transportation infrastructure. Petroleum products derived from imported crude oil, which made up 51% of the nation’s imports in 2007, make up a sizable portion of exports.