Governor Murphy sees Bahrain as New Jersey’s gateway to Gulf trade

Governor Murphy sees Bahrain as New Jersey’s gateway to Gulf trade Mohammed Darwish TDT | Manama Bahrain may serve as New Jersey’s entry point to Middle Eastern markets, Governor Phil Murphy said during a roundtable in Manama, pointing to the kingdom’s financial services presence and growing interest in digital finance.

“I’m a recovering banker, my case from Goldman Sachs,” he told journalists. “So I’ve been to the kingdom before. That was the reason I was here. But I’m thrilled to be here now as Governor of New Jersey.”

The visit is part of what Murphy called a GCC week, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

First time

It is the first time a sitting New Jersey governor has visited Bahrain.

Murphy said Bahrain was not only an important ally of the United States, but also moving in an economic direction that is very consistent with New Jersey’s own.

He gave a quick portrait of his home state: about 9.5 million residents, eleventh by population, ninth by economic output, and the fourth smallest in area.

Travels

That, he noted, makes it the most densely populated state in the country. Around 20 per cent of US GDP is either generated in or travels through New Jersey.

“We’re the most diverse American state by many measures,” he said.

The state’s strengths now lie in pharmaceuticals, life sciences, telecoms, generative AI, the green economy, logistics, film, television, digital media, and financial technology.

Opportunity

“That’s a big, I think, opportunity between the kingdom and New Jersey,” Murphy said.

He summed up New Jersey in two words: talent and location. The state has what he called the number one public education system in America and is home to top universities including Princeton and Rutgers.

Largest port

It also houses the largest port on the US East Coast and sits along the northeast corridor, a key artery for commerce.

“We sell very internationally in New Jersey,” he said. “This is our twelfth international mission in my seven-plus years as governor.”

During the visit, Murphy said he would be meeting ministers, visiting the US Fifth Fleet, and had already held briefings with the American embassy.

Memorandum of understanding

He also announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding on youth apprenticeships and exchange programmes with Bahrain’s Masari platform.

“Really excited,” he said. “I don’t think that happens unless we’re here, face to face.”

“Even in a world of Zooms and phone calls, there’s nothing, nothing like sitting face to face,” he said. “And the respect you show to actually come here, or the respect our Bahraini counterparts show when they say, “We want to go to New Jersey and visit you,” that means an enormous amount.”

Topics

Murphy said he had specific topics to raise with the Minister of Industry and Commerce, His Excellency Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, and that the visit would include discussions around capital investment, infrastructure, and joint ventures.

He also touched on trade policy, saying he was not a tariff guy. Tariffs, he said, might be useful when dealing with bad actors, but not with allies.

Good thing

He welcomed the US–Bahrain free trade agreement and called Bahrain’s strategic and defence ties with the US, particularly its hosting of the US Navy, a good thing.

Murphy said he supported the idea of more manufacturing in America, including in his own state, but would approach it differently to the Trump administration.

“I’m working with the legislature to get a massive bill passed that would incent multinationals to make stuff in New Jersey, so they wouldn’t have to worry about tariffs.”

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