Bahrain

In many ways, Bahrain has traditionally been something of a trailblazer in the region. It was the first country in the Gulf to discover oil, and, given the relatively small size of its reserves, was the first to establish a tourism industry as a means to diversify its economy. In the 1970s and 1980s, Bahrain positioned itself as the conference,...

Plastics consumption in the Gulf region has been growing exponentially over the past decade. According to a report from the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA), between 2011 and 2015 consumption of plastics in the region is set to grow from 3.3m tonnes per annum (tpa) to 5.5m tpa. The GPCA puts the value of the GCC petrochemicals...

As part of its efforts to relaunch its tourism industry and differentiate itself from other Gulf destinations, Bahrain is looking to move into the lucrative cruise ship market. As many other small island nations have found, the cruise industry offers several advantages. First, it tends to attract customers from the higher end of the income spectrum...