Bahrain’s economy grew 1.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, accelerating from a revised 0.9 percent increase in the third quarter.

Full-year growth beat a Reuters poll forecast for a 4.0 percent expansion and outperformed 3.1 percent growth in 2009.

The kingdom was been rocked recently by its worst public unrest since the 1990s as pro-democracy protesters have taken to the streets, but its economy continues to recover from the global economic downturn, helped by robust oil prices.

The construction and real estate sectors though have yet to return to pre-crisis levels.

The financial sector, which accounts for nearly 21 percent of the economy, is only slowly picking up from the financial crisis and a regional property crash.

Gross domestic product compared with a year earlier rose 4.2 percent in the fourth quarter, slowing from a 4.4 percent increase in the third quarter.

The hydrocarbon sector grew 0.2 percent in real terms in 2010, while the financial sector added 5.2 percent. The statistics office did not release data by expenditure.

Bahrain’s nominal GDP reached 8.627 billion dinars ($22.9 billion) in 2010, the data also showed.

Analysts polled by Reuters in March cut their real GDP growth forecast for Bahrain to 3.4 percent for 2011, from 4.2 percent expected in December following the unrest. The government still sees a 4.5 percent expansion.