Location: Middle East, archipelago in the Arabian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia.
Industries: petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, Islamic and offshore banking, insurance, ship repairing, tourism.
Geography: close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Arabian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean.
Area: total: 665 sq km (land: 665 sq km, water: 0 sq km.
Languages: Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu.
National Holiday: National Day, 16 December (1971)
Currency (Code): Bahraini dinar (BHD).
Capital: Manama.
Population: 738,004 Note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2010 est.)
Labor force: 611,000. Note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2009 est.)
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