It is almost impossible to generalise about the Asian infrastructure story. In a sprawling region that includes 44 economies, from the central Asia republics to the Pacific islands, it is unfeasible to compare markets such as Vietnam or Indonesia with others such as India or China in terms of levels of infrastructure development, investment or private participation. Moreover, while Asia offers a wealth of opportunities – comprising as it does of most of the world's fastest growing economies, many in desperate need of even basic infrastructure – investment in many countries is fraught with government restrictions or legal and regulatory risk.
However, one thing is certain: nobody disputes the need for huge infrastructure spending in the region. According to most development agencies, the quantum of anticipated infrastructure spending within the wider Asian market is estimated at between $250bn and $300bn a year for the foreseeable future. It is likely that a significant proportion of this expenditure will be witnessed in the four countries – China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam – that are among the most populous, with some of the fastest forecast economic growth rates in the region, but where significant current and future bottlenecks will be experienced in both economic and social infrastructure.
