The Middle East

With a flurry of new infrastructure projects, the government is selling Bahrain’s regional connectivity as a key attraction for foreign investors. While the island Kingdom may not compete for east-west traffic with global transit centres like Dubai, Doha and Istanbul, Bahrain is carving out a role as a gateway to the GCC markets.

While Jordan has had some success in meeting the requirements of its $2bn stand-by arrangement with the IMF, fulfilling its promise to lower electricity subsidies as part of a larger plan to reduce losses at the state power utility and improve the government’s fiscal position is proving more of a challenge.

Plans to roll out full car production in Saudi Arabia, part of a broader programme to expand the kingdom’s industrial base, appear set to pick up a gear, with one of the world’s best known marques moving to establish a local manufacturing facility at a time when sales of imported vehicles are rising.

Despite an improved performance so far in 2013, Turkey’s automotive sector is expected to continue to face hurdles over the coming years. The economies in some of its main export markets are underperforming and new challenges are arising from other producers looking to launch a drive into Europe, potentially raising the level of competition at home and abroad.

New regulations introduced by the Qatar Central Bank (QCB) in mid-June will curb local banks’ investment options, potentially making sovereign bonds more appealing at the expense of some private sector options. The move is taking place as the government prepares to set its infrastructure development programme into overdrive.

The government is moving to boost Oman’s mining industry, announcing plans to review additional licence applications in 2014. However, any new concessions are likely to be tied to amended investment conditions that will require raw materials to be processed before export. Such stipulations create local employment and add value to the exports.