This article covers trade and investment between India and Bahrain: bilateral trade figures by financial year, the main goods traded, investment in both directions, the presence of Indian companies in Bahrain, and the mechanisms and agreements that support economic ties. It is based on the MEA bilateral brief of June 2026, and all figures are as given there.

Bilateral trade

According to the MEA brief of June 2026, bilateral trade in 2025-26 reached USD 1.66 billion, and India is among the top five trading partners of Bahrain.

The brief's table, sourced from the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, gives the following figures in USD million:

  • 2018-19: India's exports 742.14, imports 539.63, total 1281.77
  • 2019-20: exports 559.09, imports 421.50, total 980.59
  • 2020-21: exports 528.25, imports 547.49, total 1075.74
  • 2021-22: exports 899.90, imports 753.29
  • 2022-23: exports 965.25, imports 1014.50, total 1979.75
  • 2023-24: exports 909.42, imports 829.44
  • 2024-25: exports 797.47, imports 845.41
  • 2025-26: exports 778.98, imports 887.76, total 1666.74

The totals for 2021-22, 2023-24 and 2024-25 are split across lines in the brief's table and are not reproduced here.

Main items traded

The brief lists India's main export items to Bahrain as engineering goods worth USD 201.7 million, electronic goods worth USD 157.3 million and petroleum products worth USD 105.3 million, followed by gems and jewellery worth USD 93.4 million, rice worth USD 60 million, and meat, dairy and poultry worth USD 51.7 million.

Petroleum products are traded in both directions. The brief records that India exported petroleum products worth USD 105.3 million and imported petroleum products worth USD 102.59 million from Bahrain. It states that the trade gap has dropped from 150 million in 2021-22 to USD 109 million in 2025-26.

Indian investment in Bahrain

The brief states that two-way investments have increased 71% since 2019. From Q4 2024 to Q4 2025, investments from India to Bahrain rose by USD 174 million, bringing total two-way investments to USD 2.21 billion. Of this, Indian investments stood at USD 2.02 billion and Bahraini investment at USD 0.187 billion.

According to the brief, financial services account for the highest investment value. Other important areas of investment are real estate, hospitality, health, IT and education.

Indian companies in Bahrain

As per data from the Bahrain Government cited in the brief, 38 Indian commercial agencies, 32 branches of prominent Indian companies and more than 7500 Indian owned or India Joint Venture companies were registered in Bahrain as on October 2020.

Bahraini investment in India

The brief states that Bahrain's investments into India have shown an increasing trend recently. Total cumulative investment from Bahrain to India is about USD 185 million, compared with USD 31.55 million in December 2013. The main sectors are real estate, information technology and engineering.

Ministerial visits on trade

Bahrain's Minister of Industry and Commerce, Mr. Abdullah bin Adel Fakhro, has visited India three times for business events:

  • 13-15 March 2023, for the 28th CII Partnership Summit 2023
  • 2-3 December 2024, for the 29th CII Partnership Summit 2024 in New Delhi
  • 21-22 February 2025, for the Global Investment Summit "Invest Kerala Global Summit" in Kochi, Kerala

Mechanisms and agreements

The 1st meeting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) on Trade and Investment was held virtually on 09 February 2026. The brief gives its level as a Joint Secretary of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce, India, and the Assistant Under Secretary for Domestic and Foreign Trade in Bahrain's Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The brief lists the 2nd meeting as the next scheduled.

Agreements with an economic focus listed in the brief include:

  • Agreement regarding Exchange of Information with respect to Taxes (May 2012)
  • MoU between Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre and Bahrain Economic Development Board (September 2014)