Steering a careful path

A decline in oil prices and a regional economic crash should be bad news for an oil-based economy in south-east Asia. But Brunei is insulated from the worst of this economic turbulence. And this quiet country of 300,000 people is focused on the longer term. Nigel Ash reports

Words such as “crisis” and “recession” which are being hurled around much of the rest of Asia, do not seem very appropriate in Brunei’s capital Bandar Seri Begawan. Riots and political unrest may be gripping its immediate neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia, but Brunei Darussalam (The abode of peace) is living up to its name. The autumn storms can be loud and flashy but they are short-lived and the rain they bring is warm and not unpleasant.

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