Countries · Middle East
Bahrain
Bahrain is a regional banking and financial centre, with smaller oil reserves than its Gulf neighbours.
At a glance
Net inflows of foreign direct investment were $0.82bn in 2025, against an average of $1.86bn a year in 2015–2024. Investors based in Bahrain put a net $0.55bn into direct investment abroad in the same year, less than Bahrain received.
Bahrain's reserves are small relative to its Gulf neighbours. Its US Treasury holdings are not reported separately.
Direct and equity investment
Annual net flows, $bn. Direct investment means building or buying businesses; portfolio equity means buying listed shares and fund units.
Net flows by year
Direct investment into and out of Bahrain, and foreign buying of its shares, $bn.
Current account and reserves
The balance of trade and income with the rest of the world, and the reserves held by the central bank.
Current account balance
Each year, $bn. A surplus means the country lends to the rest of the world.
Foreign exchange reserves, including gold
End of year, $bn.
The economy
GDP
Current US dollars, $bn. Dollar figures also move with exchange rates.
Growth and inflation
Real GDP growth and consumer price inflation, per cent.
All figures
Annual figures from the World Bank, as published. Download them for every country on the data page.
| Indicator | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (m) | 1.37 | 1.42 | 1.50 | 1.50 | 1.48 | 1.47 | 1.50 | 1.52 | 1.58 | 1.59 | 1.60 |
| GDP ($bn) | 32.5 | 33.9 | 37.2 | 39.6 | 40.4 | 35.8 | 40.8 | 46.5 | 46.2 | 47.2 | 49.0 |
| GDP per person ($) | 23,734 | 23,800 | 24,785 | 26,324 | 27,260 | 24,343 | 27,148 | 30,471 | 29,290 | 29,717 | 30,597 |
| Real GDP growth (%) | 2.5 | 3.8 | 5.0 | 2.1 | 2.1 | −5.9 | 4.4 | 6.2 | 3.9 | 2.9 | 3.5 |
| Inflation (%) | 1.8 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.0 | −2.3 | −0.6 | 3.6 | 0.1 | 0.9 | −0.1 |
| Current account ($bn) | −0.75 | −1.49 | −1.60 | −2.43 | −0.79 | −3.24 | 2.60 | 6.84 | 2.70 | 2.28 | 2.82 |
| Current account (% GDP) | −2.3 | −4.4 | −4.3 | −6.2 | −2.0 | −9.1 | 6.4 | 14.7 | 5.8 | 4.8 | 5.8 |
| Reserves incl. gold ($bn) | 3.5 | 2.6 | 2.8 | 2.3 | 3.9 | 2.5 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 5.1 | 4.9 | 5.3 |
| Direct investment in ($bn) | 0.06 | 0.24 | 1.43 | 1.65 | 0.94 | 1.02 | 1.78 | 1.95 | 6.84 | 2.70 | 0.82 |
| Direct investment out ($bn) | 3.19 | −0.88 | 0.23 | 0.11 | −0.20 | −0.21 | 0.06 | 1.95 | 1.11 | 0.28 | 0.55 |
| Portfolio equity in ($bn) | — | — | 2.57 | 0.67 | 1.38 | 3.43 | 2.37 | 1.41 | 6.12 | 3.41 | — |
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