Prime Minister Dr Mari Alkatiri tells The Banker how the world’s newest nation will handle its burgeoning economy.

Simon Montlake reports from Dili on the government’s plans to turn petroleum wealth into long-term economic development in Asia’s poorest country.

China usurps Australia for first time as the continent’s principal contributor to aggregate banking profits.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), the sixth largest bank in the world by Tier 1 capital in The Banker’s Top 1000, has spent $1.6bn on 5% of state-owned Bank of China.

Investors should not ignore the fact that Japan’s economic recovery is finely balanced, with high oil prices and a shrinking population among the problems that must be addressed sooner or later.

Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala II says that demographics mean that exporting jobs or workers is becoming a vital part of doing business in a global economy.

China’s decision on July 21 to replace its currency peg to the US dollar with a managed floating exchange rate regime has been welcomed by those clamouring for currency reform. But the relatively small 2.1% revaluation of the renminbi leaves many questions unanswered.

Foreign banks that are keen to tap the potential of the under-penetrated Indian market are finding a variety of ways in, despite the barriers. Kala Rao reports.

India’s banking sector could learn some useful lessons from Iceland’s strong showing in The Banker’s Top 1000 world banks.

The upgrade of Indonesia’s sovereign rating gave momentum to a ground-breaking securitisation transaction that could be followed by others in Asia.