Introduction:

Real estate sector plays a critical and pivotal role in the economic activity at the global level, because it is one of active and significant investment instruments of the states' GDP at the regional and international levels.

As the Kingdom applies economic open-door policy as the region's important financial hub; in addition to flexible real estate regulations and laws governing real estate trading, the real estate trading index constantly and steadily grew totaling BD537,127,488 by the end of the first quarter of this year compared to BD236,613,071 over the same period last year; and increase of BD300,514,417, which is 44% up to the trading figure for 2007.

The highest trading ratio was in the first quarter in 2008:

March 2008 witnessed the highest trading ratio during the first quarter of this year as the value of traded real estate was BD242,273,758, compared to BD 94,421,710 in February 2007 which was the highest month of traded real estate.

The value and percentage of real estate trading per governorate for the first quarter of 2008:

The capital governorate scored the highest real estate trading percentage among other governorates by 49%, followed by Muharraq governorate by 19%, the Northern governorate by 18%, the Central governorate by 10% and finally the southern governorate by 5%.

Trading percentage of Bahraini citizens, GCC nationals and foreigners

Total trading volume of Bahraini citizens during the first quarter of 2008 was 93% of the total real estate transactions, 7% for GCC nationals and foreigners, compared to 86% in 2007 for Bahraini citizens and 14% for GCC nationals and foreigners. Saudi citizens had the highest share compared to the share of other nationalities as their transactions amounted to BD28,208,262, followed by and the Kuwaiti citizens by BD 3,490,081 and Qatari citizens by BD 1,158.073.