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Throughout 2014 Turkey had to shoulder its fair share of international financial turbulence, especially in terms of currency volatility. However, despite investor concerns, the country has largely retained its appeal and long-term growth potential, provided appropriate structural reforms are enacted. The past decade has seen the economy thrive. A young and growing population and a strategically important location have helped make Turkey a potential economic heavyweight. However, concerns remain over renewed political uncertainty and the private sector’s exposure to external debt. If the country can overcome the current investor uncertainty and improve productivity through much-needed reforms, the ambitious growth targets set by the government could eventually be reached. This chapter contains interviews with Mehmet Şimşek, Minister of Finance; Mark Lewis, Former Senior Resident Representative in Turkey, International Monetary Fund; and Ömer Cihad Vardan, President, Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey.

Turkey has spent the last decade trying to maximise the potential of its geographical position to fuel export-led growth. While this has been hampered by a heavy dependence on imports, especially hydrocarbons, and a bulging current account deficit, the country has made great strides in increasing trade volumes and diversifying markets. With strong domestic growth and a sense of economic stability following the difficulties of the 1990s and the 2001 banking crisis, the country has been able to radically transform the investment environment, garnering record foreign direct investment in the last 10 years. The coming year is likely to see Turkey’s trade deficit shrink as a number of factors converge to boost exports. This chapter contains an interview with Richard Moore, UK Ambassador to Turkey, and a viewpoint from Dr Jim Yong Kim, President, World Bank Group.

This chapter outlines the Mongolian legal environment, focusing on changes that include a new Investment Law, Petroleum Law and an amendment to the Minerals Law that is expected to boost FDI. It also contains a viewpoint from David Beckstead, Foreign Legal Consultant at Lehman, Lee & Xu.

This chapter outlines the tax environment in Mongolia, focusing on the new investment law, account regulations, corporate income taxation and other subjects. It also contains a viewpoint from D. Onchinsuren, Country Managing Partner, Deloitte Onch LLC.

The tourism industry has taken on an increasingly central role in Mongolia in recent years. In 2013 the country saw more than 415,000 incoming visitors and reported market turnover of $263m, which represented about 4% of GDP at the end of the year. These moves are in line with the government’s ambitious short-term and medium-term objectives, which include increasing international arrivals to 600,000 in 2015 and 1m by 2017. These goals will be supported by a considerable reworking of Mongolia’s tourism regulatory framework, which was under way as of April 2015. Broadly, under the new legislation, the government plans to take on a more active role in the development of the tourism sector and to work to facilitate increased transparency and competitiveness in the private sector. Most local players agree that Mongolia has the potential to eventually become a sizeable and highly profitable tourist destination. The country’s many tourism assets bode well for growth, as does the government’s restructuring effort. This chapter contains an interview with B. Indraa, Executive Director, Tourism for Future NGO, and Director of the Governing Board, Mongolia National Tourism Organisation.