While Papua New Guinea has a free and open economy, it is also a place where it can be exceedingly challenging to do business. General conditions are difficult, and some areas of administration and law can cause things to progress at a slow pace. The US State Department’s 2016 Investment Climate statement noted that the country “appears to...
The international position of Papua New Guinea has improved in recent years as the country continues to benefit from a number of positive trends. A stabilisation in commodity prices, strong output from the country’s major projects and an end to the El Niño drought have brought major trade indicators back into line. The lack of dollars and the...
Papua New Guinea’s banking sector is sound, stable and profitable. Despite slow economic growth in the country in recent years, institutions have managed their exposures well and entered the current weak patch in a strong position. They are generating good results and investing in future growth. Regulation is solid and improving, with the...
Despite some weak headline numbers, Papua New Guinea’s economy is set to see a recovery in 2017. Depreciation of the kina and the shortage of US dollars have slowed imports and led to pockets of strength. Robust activity at the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) level and in the informal sector is being observed, while key statistics,...
Papua New Guinea was well prepared for the 2008 financial crisis, as it had reduced its debt and had some room to manoeuvre. The country’s obligations dropped from around 70% of GDP in the early 2000s to about 20% a decade later. This, in part, explains why the crisis was so short lived, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB). However,...
By most measures Papua New Guinea is under-banked. Branch density is low and has not risen in at least a decade, while the loan-to-GDP ratio is 31%, well below that reported by neighbours and peers. The Philippines is at 41%, Solomon Islands 38%, Thailand 151%, Vietnam 111% and Indonesia 39%. It is estimated that only 20% of people in PNG have...
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