The pearling industry was part of the main economy of the coastal communities across Eastern Arabia and thrived in the relative calm at sea, providing both income and employment to the people of the Persian Gulf. In total, about two to three thousand local ships were involved in the seasonal extraction of pearls from communities across the Gulf. The annual income was over half million curzados (old Portuguese currency) and workers at Julfar and surrounding areas were paid in pearls instead of cash. In 1907, some 4,500 pearling boats were operating from Gulf ports in an industry employing over 74,000 men.