Cairo - Decypha: The real growth rate of Bahrain’s non-oil sector has reached an annual rate of 4.7% in the third quarter (Q3) of 2016, in comparison to 3.6% growth in the previous quarter, according to the latest figures published in the Economic Development Board’s Bahrain Economic Quarterly.
Overall, during the first three quarters of 2016 the Bahraini economy expanded by a real 3.6% over the corresponding period in 2015.
The boost in growth is attributed to a strong expansion across a range of sectors, with particularly robust performances in social & personal services, construction and financial services.
A key factor underpinning the momentum in the non-oil economy remains an unprecedented pipeline of large-scale infrastructure projects, the implementation of which has accelerated over the last year. Key projects include a $3 billion project for ALBA’s sixth pot line, an associated $800 million power station deal, a $1.0 billion contract for the Airport Modernisation programme and a new $355 million Banagas gas plant.
Other contributing elements from the side of the government were a number of regulatory reforms introduced in Bahrain.
Investment by the GCC Development Fund is an important element in this project pipeline. The total value of projects that have broken ground has more than doubled to a total of $3.1 billion since the end of 2015. During the same period, the value of tendered projects rose by 20.5% to over $4.3 billion.
