Economy

As evidenced by Sarawak’s positive performance across a variety of subsectors, its economy is already among the most diversified in Malaysia, even before the impending wave of industrial projects begins to contribute. Financial incentives and substantial investments in infrastructure appear to have generated considerable international interest from a range of industries.

Home to an estimated 15.9% of the world’s proven oil reserves, Saudi Arabia is the single largest economy in the Middle East and North Africa. According to the Ministry of Finance, real GDP grew by 3.8% to $746bn in 2013. While oil income is expected to continue to account for the majority of government revenues for the foreseeable future, the non-oil sector has expanded significantly in recent decades growing 9.3% in 2013.

Jordan’s stable political environment, as well as the robust growth projections for its economy, should ensure near term investment inflows continue to fuel growth across the board; however, regional instability has been having a negative impact on the country’s tourism sector and rising refugee numbers are putting increased pressure on state services.

Vietnam has emerged as one of the fastest-growing economies in South-east Asia, offering a number of attractive investment opportunities in manufacturing, finance, construction, telecoms and logistics. Its diverse economy is expected to deliver growth of between 6% and 10% annually over the next 5-10 years, supported by a large population of over 95m.

Sharjah is the UAE’s third-largest emirate with a population of almost 800,000 and a GDP of roughly $24bn. Government focus on education programmes and the development of a diversified economic base has helped support Sharjah’s robust growth in recent years while its relatively small oil and gas reserves mean the emirate has been less affected than many by the oil price-induced turbulence witnessed over the past two years.