Economy

Brunei’s economy appears set for a period of consolidation and moderate if steady growth as the government combines careful management of energy resources with timely investments aimed at spurring expansion in the coming years.

While this year has seen several stories in the Western media about Turkey's "turn east", the country’s efforts to maintain positive trade relations with Iran despite recent sanctions on its nuclear programme are likely more pragmatic than political.

Malaysia's national oil and gas giant Petronas plans to launch two major Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in November, Petronas Chemical and Malaysia Maritime and Heavy Engineering (MMHE), as part of a government initiative to transfer strategic assets to the private sector. The Petronas Chemical listing is set to become one of the biggest IPOs in Malaysian – and indeed South-east Asian – history.

Over the past two years Abu Dhabi’s economy has demonstrated considerable resilience and stability in the face of the global economic downturn, leaving it well placed for continued growth.

The Bank of Indonesia, the country's central bank, called leading bankers to a meeting last week to discuss new regulations aimed at increasing bank lending. While Indonesia's banking sector has remained relatively robust over the last 18 months, there are concerns that banks are not doing enough to offer credit to certain sectors of the economy, a situation that is stifling potential growth.

The economy of the Bahamas is expected to face another lean year before embarking on a modest recovery and moderate but steady growth, though many of the problems are not of the country's own making.