Bahrain Targets 5% Increase in Non-Oil Sector

General view of Bahrain World Trade Center in Manama, Bahrain, February 21, 2019. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
General view of Bahrain World Trade Center in Manama, Bahrain, February 21, 2019. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
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Bahrain Targets 5% Increase in Non-Oil Sector

General view of Bahrain World Trade Center in Manama, Bahrain, February 21, 2019. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
General view of Bahrain World Trade Center in Manama, Bahrain, February 21, 2019. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

Bahrain targets a 5% increase in the non-oil economic sector in 2022, said a report published by the Bahrain News Agency BNA.

It pointed out that the contributions of non-oil activities to the Kingdom’s GDP increased from 58% in 2002 to 81% in 2020, up $33 billion.

In order to achieve this target, Manama set a plan to implement advanced strategies aimed at developing the tourism sector to attract 14.1 million tourists by 2026, and the logistic services by raising the capacity of Khalifa bin Salman Port to one million containers, air freight to one million metric tons, and adding more than 70 air destinations.

Among its objectives are supporting the transformation of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, such as manufacturing automation and artificial intelligence, developing the financial services sector, with 365 financial and banking institutions, and supporting the digital economy.

This comes in line with ranking the Kingdom first in the Arab region on the ICT Development Index (IDI) by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) report 2021.

The report underlined statistics by the World Bank and Digital 2021: Global Overview Report showing that Bahrain was also ranked first globally in the rate of individuals using the internet, with nearly 100% of the population.

It excels in 5G network coverage and seeks to cover 95% of households with high-speed fiber optic technology by 2023, the report added.

The Kingdom also seeks to raise the number of electronic services provided to the population from 578 to 1,600, develop the oil sector by completing the “Bapco Refinery” expansion projects, activate the LNG import platform, and develop oil and gas resources.

Bahrain has been witnessing positive economic developments in line with its advanced programs and policy to diversify sources of income, encourage investment and innovation, and provide more job opportunities for citizens.

This comes as part of its development vision that relies on transforming challenges into sustainable success opportunities.



Global Markets Reel from Putin's Nuclear Threats

A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system drives in Red Square during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 78th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia May 9, 2023. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS
A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system drives in Red Square during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 78th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia May 9, 2023. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS
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Global Markets Reel from Putin's Nuclear Threats

A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system drives in Red Square during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 78th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia May 9, 2023. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS
A Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system drives in Red Square during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 78th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia May 9, 2023. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS

President Vladimir Putin’s remarks on Tuesday about revising Russia’s nuclear doctrine triggered immediate reactions in global financial markets, as investors rushed to safe haven assets.

Putin issued a warning to the US lowering the threshold for a nuclear strike after the administration of Joe Biden reportedly allowed Ukraine to fire American-made long-range missiles deep into Russia.

The Russian President’s warnings sent markets to extreme volatility.

In this context, global stocks sharply fell while gold prices and the Japanese yen climbed amid rising geopolitical tensions between Ukraine and Russia.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday, “The Russian Federation reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in the event of aggression against it or the Republic of Belarus, ... with the use of conventional weapons, in a way that poses a critical threat to their sovereignty and (or) territorial integrity.”

The spokesperson further said that Russia would view the use of Western non-nuclear missiles by Ukraine as an attack by a non-nuclear state with the support of a nuclear state against the country, potentially justifying the use of nuclear weapons by Moscow, according to NBC news.

Rise of safe-haven assets

Global stocks briefly fell and investors fled to safe-haven assets on Tuesday, as global markets reacted to escalating tensions between the world's two largest nuclear powers: Russia and the US.

Investors rushed to safe-haven assets including gold and the Japanese yen.

Wall Street’s fear index, the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s CBOE Volatility Index, jumped to 17,88, its highest level since the November 5 US elections. It then fell to 16.61.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 327 points, or 0.7%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite lost 0.5% each. Treasurys increased as investors moved into the safe haven, driving yields lower.

Europe's main stock index touched its lowest level in three months on Tuesday, spurring investors to head to safer havens.

The pan-European STOXX 600 closed 0.9% lower, after logging a third straight day of losses.

Metals and currencies under pressure

Meanwhile, base metals prices came under pressure on Tuesday as some investors chose safe-haven assets due to signs of escalating tensions between Russia and the United States over Ukraine.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) fell 0.3% to $9,042 per metric ton in official open-outcry trading. Spot gold prices rose by about 1%.

Meanwhile, LME aluminium prices were stable at $2,607 in official activity as the market digested China's plan to remove a tax refund on exports of some aluminium products.

Lead lost 0.4% to $1,983 due to the second day of a significant inflow of the metal to the LME-registered warehouses in Singapore.

Zinc fell 0.1% to $2,947.5, tin eased 0.4% to $28,900 and nickel rose 1.2% to $15,915.

In currency markets, the Japanese yen rose 0.7% and 0.36% against the euro and US dollar respectively.

“Typical risk-off move in forex following the headline,” said Athanasios Vamvakidis, global head of forex strategy at Bofa, referring to the reaction to the Kremlin statement.

“The market has been complacent on geopolitical risks, focusing on other themes,” he added. “Positioning has been a long risk, getting even more stretched after the US elections.”

In return, crude oil futures were down slightly. A barrel of West Texas Intermediate, scheduled for delivery in December, fell 0.53% to $68.79.

Meanwhile, the price of a barrel of Brent, scheduled for delivery in January, fell 0.38% to $73.02.