Bloody clashes between anti-government protesters and riot police in Bahrain have got many people outside the Middle East looking at the island state for the first time. But does it matter to business and investors?
The answer is yes. Not so much because Bahrain is a financial centre and home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet. But because Bahrain has the potential – belied by its tiny size – to inspire political ructions in Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil producer. That explains why the protests have exacerbated jitters in the Middle East’s already shaky stock markets.
