RIYADH: Bahrain posted a real gross domestic product growth rate of 2 percent in the first quarter of 2023, fueled by a rise of 3.5 percent in the non-oil sector, showed the country’s recent economic report.
According to the Bahraini Ministry of Finance and National Economy, the average quarterly increase of the annual non-oil GDP has reached about 5.7 percent since implementing its Economic Recovery Plan in October 2021.
The initiative aims to stimulate growth, attract investments and create job opportunities for the through five priorities and 27 programs.
According to the latest figures, the non-oil economic sectors experienced positive annual growth, with the transportation and communications sphere posting the highest growth rate of 11.2 percent, revealed the ministry’s quarterly report.
This rise was backed by the expansion of several sector indicators, including the 42.3 percent increase in arrivals through Bahrain International Airport and the 32.1 percent rise in total aircraft movement.
In addition, real estate and business activities, financial corporations, hotels and restaurants and trade all grew between 4.2 percent and 5.3 percent.
The report also noted that Bahrain’s manufacturing contracted by 1.1 percent, whereas construction shrunk by 1.3 percent in the first three months of 2023.
On the other hand, the oil sector witnessed a 5.9 percent drop due to the cutback in production brought about by seasonal maintenance, showed the report.
Between January and March, the quarterly average price of Brent crude fell by 20.6 percent to $81.07. Oil amounted to almost 15 percent of the country’s GDP.
The report, however, expects real GDP to increase by 2.9 percent in 2023 as the non-oil sector grew by 3.5 percent and the oil sector remained stable.
It added that the country will witness a growth rate of 3.2 percent.
In its annual economic report released in March, the ministry reported a growth rate of 4.9 percent in 2022, the highest economic growth pace since 2013.
The document also highlighted that Bahrain was steadily progressing in its economic diversification journey, as its non-oil real GDP witnessed 6.2 percent growth in 2022, the highest since 2012.
Bahrain’s non-oil GDP growth in 2022 also surpassed the 5 percent annual target set by its economic recovery plan.
“The positive results posted today are the cumulation of many years of hard work and careful planning by the Government of Bahrain to lay the foundations for a sustainable, diverse and prosperous economy,” said Bahrain’s Minister of Finance and National Economy Salman bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa at the time.
