Editing Manama (section)

== Economy ==
{{Main|Economy of Bahrain}}
[[File:Manama Fog.jpg|thumb|left|Central Manama]]
[[File:BAHRAIN FINANCIAL HARBOUR.jpg|thumb|The [[Bahrain Financial Harbour]] in Manama.]]
Manama is the focal point of the Bahraini economy. While petroleum has decreased in importance in recent years due to depleting reserves and growth in other industries, it is still the mainstay of the economy. [[Heavy industry]] (e.g. aluminium [[smelting]], ship repair), banking and finance, and tourism are among the industries which have experienced recent growth. Several multinationals have facilities and offices in and around Manama.<ref name="cia">[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bahrain/ CIA World Factbook&nbsp;– Bahrain (retrieved 2 December 2006)]</ref> The primary industry in Manama itself is financial services, with over two hundred financial institutions and banks based in the [[Central Business District, Manama|CBD]] and the [[Diplomatic Area]]. Manama is a financial hub for the Persian Gulf region and a center of [[Islamic banking]].  There is also a large retail sector in the shopping malls around [[Seef]], while the center of Manama is dominated by small workshops and traders.

Manama's economy in the early 20th century relied heavily on [[Pearl hunting|pearling]]; in 1907, the pearling industry was estimated to include 917 boats providing employment for up to 18,000 people. [[Shipbuilding]] also employed several hundred in both Manama and [[Muharraq]]. The estimated income earned from pearling in 1926 and subsequent years prior to the [[Great Depression]] was £1.5&nbsp;million annually. [[Custom duties]] and [[tariff]]s served as the prime source of revenue for the government. With the onset of the Great Depression, the collapse of the pearling industry and the [[First Oil Well, Bahrain|discovery of oil]] in 1932, the country's economy began to shift towards oil.{{sfn|Al-Nabi|2012|p=20}}

Historically, the ports at Manama were of poor reputation. The British described the ports importing systems as being "very bad – goods were exposed to the weather and there were long delays in delivery", in 1911. Indians began maintaining the ports and new resources were built on site, improving the situation. As of 1920, Manama was one of the main exporters of [[Bahrain Pearling Trail|Bahrain pearls]], attracting [[steamship]]s from India. During this time, they also imported goods from India and from other regional countries. They imported rice, textiles, [[ghee]], coffee, dates, tea, tobacco, fuel, and livestock. They exported less of a variety, with a focus on pearls, [[oyster]]s, and [[sailcloth]]. For the year of 1911–12, Manama was visited by 52 steamships, the majority being British and the rest Turkish-Arabian.<ref name=Prothero73>{{cite book|last=Prothero|first=G.W.|title=Arabia|year=1920|publisher=H.M. Stationery Office|location=London|page=73|url=http://www.wdl.org/en/item/11767/view/1/73/}}</ref>