The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) (link to FTA article) is designed to promote trade and provide greater market access between the US and Bahrain. Some of its key features are:
• The provision of 100% duty free market access in consumer and industrial products including agricultural products and textiles;
• Increased benefits for businesses in the Service Sector through the elimination of all barriers to trade in this sector;
• Greater opportunities for US companies providing financial services including banks, insurance, securities and related services;
• A more open easily accessible telecommunications market between the two countries;
• Providing Bahraini service providers National or Most Favoured Nation Treatment, enabling them to compete equally with their US counterparts and opening the way for them to provide said services in the US without further regulatory restrictions;
• Re-enforcement of internationally endorsed standards for the protection of workers’ rights, environment and IP rights;
• Affording non-Bahraini manufacturers and service providers the opportunity to benefit from the FTA and access the US market through the establishment of businesses in the Kingdom. This is mutually applicable to US companies who shall have access to the Gulf and Arab region through the establishment of businesses in Bahrain.
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further assist you if you are an American company looking to invest in Bahrain.
