All Countries and All Sectors

Trade and diplomacy took centre stage in 2010. In economic terms, it was a year in which Turkey was courted aggressively by both its Western partners and neighbours in the region. The country finished out 2010 with a number of trade agreements either inked or in the works, while the government made much headway in advocating Turkish business interests in its dealings with foreign partners. Meanwhile, Turkey’s main business centre, Istanbul, received a significant publicity boost thanks to its status as the European Capital of Culture for 2010.

The long-stalled privatisation of the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) appears one step closer to completion, with global operator Cable and Wireless Communications (CWC) set to take a controlling interest in the Bahamian firm in April, although the move has not been without its critics.

Brunei Darussalam is moving to strengthen its food security, working to increase production of vital crops at home while also looking at the option of investing in farms and agriculture facilities overseas to ensure the nation’s staple requirements are met.

Saudi Arabia is looking to diversify its domestic power industry away from its existing reliance on fossil fuels by investing heavily to make renewable energy the Kingdom’s central source of electricity, a move that will extend the life of its oil fields, protect export earnings and pay environmental dividends.

There are signs that Egypt’s tourism industry may be set to recover far more quickly than expected from the two months of political turmoil and protests that brought the country’s economy to a near standstill. Visitor numbers are starting to climb, although any rebound will of course be dependent on a prolonged period of stability.

The banking sector in Sabah – already well-managed and capitalised – seems poised for a positive performance in 2011, but consumers will also benefit from an increase in competition. With strong economic fundamentals in place on the back of high crude palm oil (CPO) prices (which tend to broadly track those of regular crude oil) and a burgeoning local tourism sector, Sabah’s financial services market is attracting growing interest from foreign players.