Bahrain Import Trade Data: $15.35B in 2023, Down 1.2%

Bahrain's Top Import Sources in 2023

Bahrain imported $15.35 billion worth of goods in 2023, the latest year with verified trade data in this dataset. That total marks a decline of 1.2% from the $15.53 billion recorded in 2022, a modest pullback that leaves the total essentially flat compared with the prior year. China was the largest source of Bahrain's imports, supplying 14.0% of the total, worth $2.15 billion.

United Arab Emirates ranked second at 9.4% ($1.44 billion), narrowly ahead of Brazil at 9.1% ($1.39 billion) and Australia at 8.2% ($1.26 billion). Saudi Arabia took fifth place at 6.4% ($976.05 million), just ahead of the United States at 6.3% ($973.06 million). India supplied 4.8% ($744.44 million), Japan added 4.5% ($685.68 million), Germany contributed 3.4% ($526.51 million), and Italy rounded out the top ten at 2.6% ($404.58 million). Together, the top three sources made up 32.5% of total import value.

Brazil and Australia's combined presence in third and fourth place is a distinctive feature of Bahrain's import profile: both countries rank among the world's largest producers of bauxite and alumina, the raw materials that feed aluminium smelting. Given that ores, slag, and ash also rank as Bahrain's second-largest import category by product, discussed further below, this partner pairing points to a supply chain built around importing the mineral inputs an aluminium industry needs, processing them domestically, and shipping the finished metal back out. Saudi Arabia and the USA are close enough to be functionally tied for fifth place, separated by less than a tenth of a percentage point, underscoring how evenly matched the middle of Bahrain's import ranking is beyond the top four.

Compared with a single dominant partner controlling the bulk of trade, Bahrain's import sources are spread relatively evenly across the top ten: China leads but holds only 14.0% of the total, and even the tenth-ranked partner, Italy, still clears 2.6%. That gradual taper, without any partner holding a share close to half the total, reflects Bahrain's role as a regional trading and refining hub that draws raw materials, machinery, and consumer goods from a genuinely global set of suppliers rather than depending heavily on one or two dominant relationships.

Leading Import Categories

Machinery and mechanical appliances led all import categories in 2023, worth $1.81 billion and accounting for 11.8% of total import value. Ores, slag, and ash followed closely at 10.5%, worth $1.61 billion, and inorganic chemicals ranked third at 8.8% ($1.36 billion).

Electrical machinery and equipment added 8.1% ($1.24 billion), while vehicles contributed 8.0% ($1.23 billion). Precious stones and metals brought in 5.7% ($876.11 million), and mineral fuels added 3.4% ($528.74 million). Pharmaceutical products contributed 2.8% ($427.79 million), plastics added 2.4% ($373.22 million), and iron or steel articles closed out the top ten at 2.4% ($369.58 million).

Ores, slag, and ash ranking second among import categories, together with inorganic chemicals in third place, is consistent with the raw-material sourcing pattern already visible in the partner rankings above. Alumina refining, the intermediate step between bauxite ore and finished aluminium metal, typically relies on both mineral ore inputs and specific inorganic chemical processing agents, and Bahrain's position as home to a major aluminium smelter would naturally generate substantial import demand in exactly these two categories. Together, these two categories account for more than $2.9 billion, or close to a fifth of total import value, a scale that points to industrial feedstock rather than finished consumer goods driving a meaningful share of the import bill.

Precious stones and metals ranking sixth, worth $876.11 million, likely reflects Bahrain's role in the regional gold and jewelry trade, a sector with a long-established presence across the Gulf. Vehicles and electrical machinery, meanwhile, point to conventional consumer and commercial demand rather than industrial feedstock, rounding out a category mix where a meaningful share of import value serves the aluminium and metals industry while the rest supports everyday commercial and consumer activity, from pharmaceuticals and plastics to finished steel products.

A Modest Pullback After Several Years of Swings

The five-year trend shows imports declining for two consecutive years before recovering and then easing back slightly. Imports moved from $18.59 billion in 2019 to $15.46 billion in 2020, fell further to $14.14 billion in 2021, then recovered to $15.53 billion in 2022 before slipping 1.2% to $15.35 billion in 2023. Bahrain's most recent two years have been comparatively stable, holding within a narrow band of roughly $15.3 billion to $15.5 billion, even as the total remains well below the 2019 starting point, still down by close to 17% from that level.

This pattern is consistent with the World Bank's WITS trade summary for Bahrain, which confirms China's leading role among the country's import sources alongside the broader import totals recorded for 2023. For a closer look at how individual partner countries or product categories break down year over year, the data panels above provide the full detail behind these figures.