The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Jeffrey Mountevans, is leading a business delegation to Bahrain (23 – 24 January 2016). The visit will focus on strengthening the UK’s relationship with Bahrain and ensuring that the UK remains Bahrain’s partner of choice for financial and professional services.

The Lord Mayor, an ambassador for the UK’s financial and professional services, will meet business leaders and senior members of Bahrain’s government.

Speaking ahead of the trip, Lord Mayor Mountevans said:

“Bahrain is a vital partner for UK companies. Its status as one of the Gulf’s major trading hubs means many of our firms already have a presence there, and many more want to join them. We are working hard to ensure the UK continues to be seen as its partner of choice when it comes to business, financial and professional services.

“Closer partnership will support the national and regional goals of economic diversification, growth and education. I will also discuss the UK’s expertise in developing infrastructure projects like schools, hospitals, social housing, roads and rail networks. The City of London has immense experience in this field and pioneered innovative financing models that mobilise the two-way flow of capital and help with that economic diversification.”

Signs of the strong relationship between Bahrain and the UK:

• There are over 500 active UK commercial agencies and over 90 branches of British companies in Bahrain. In addition, over 350 Bahraini companies have UK partners;

• British businesses already operating in Bahrain include HSBC and Standard Chartered;

• The total value of bilateral trade in 2014 was about £451.4 million, up by 2% from 2013;

• Bahrain is one of the UK’s largest export markets in the GCC. The UK exported £295.5 million in goods to Bahrain in 2014, a 9% increase on 2013;

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