Bay of Plenty in 2011 Business & Economic Research Limited (BERL) identified the Bay of Plenty as one of the top performing regions in economic development, ranking second behind Auckland. It had the highest employment and GDP growth for 2011 and had the fastest growing medium term GDP. Tauranga, the region's largest commercial centre, was named New Zealand's top city for economic performance for the 2011 year. 67.1% of the resident population in the Bay of Plenty identified with the European ethnic group, while 27.5% of people identified themselves as Māori. This compared with 67.6% of the national population identifying themselves as ethnic
Countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal country in the region. In countries such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India, a primary reason for the increased emphasis on coastal aquaculture is the increase in foreign exchange earnings generated from shrimp farming. Thailand's Andaman coast is the largest hub of tourism in the region. Sri Lanka's tourism industry has seen growth despite decades of civil war in the country's north. Bangladesh and India have significantly developed their domestic tourism industries, such as in Cox's Bazar. South India's renowned temple cities, such as Tanjore, are located near the Bay of Bengal. In Bangladesh, the notable mosque city of Bagerhat