With its unresolved dispute with Saudi Arabia over the so-called 'neutral zone' rumbling on, record-low oil prices and the possibility of an Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries-imposed production freeze, Kuwait's oil industry is under pressure. Still, the country remains committed to investments in the sector.   

Kuwait's economy has come under pressure in the past year, mainly due to falling oil prices. But, with the help of healthy sovereign reserves, the country has weathered the difficulties well, and the government remains committed to its long-term development plan. 

The director-general of the Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Agency tells James King how the country's opening up to foreign investment and the liberalisation of its economy is helping to alleviate the impact of the oil price crash.

There is a positive mood in Kuwait's banking sector, thanks in no small part to the government's healthy balance sheet and its commitment to project spending. However, the low oil price environment and cooling real estate market loom large on the horizon.

Kuwait boasts one of the most respected Islamic finance markets in the world. But ever keen to move with the times, the country is establishing a capital markets authority law designed to develop the domestic sukuk market, one of many recent boosts the industry has received.

The vice-governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, Abdulaziz Saleh Al-Furaih, is happy for the central bank to maintain low interest rates and a consistent policy on the riyal. He tells James King of his plans for SMEs, the low oil price environment and what the future holds for the country's banking sector.

As banks in the Middle East cope with the impact of the oil price slump on domestic economies by increasingly looking to new markets – Turkey and Egypt in particular – lenders from countries that had retreated in the aftermath of the global financial crisis are heading back into the region.

The high levels of merger and acquisition activity seen in the Middle East and Africa banking sector – from both overseas names and domestic companies – shows that the economic and political turbulence much of the region has experienced in recent years has not dampened investors' appetites.

The United Arab Emirates Banks Federation is embarking on a range of measures to tackle the country’s slowing economy, including improving mobile banking payment services, bolstering the assistance provided to SMEs, and developing a more consistent approach to applying sharia law to finance. Its chairman speaks to James King.

Iran's potential – with its abundant natural resources, young and educated workforce, advantageous geographical location and emerging status as a tourism hub – can now be realised with the sanctions imposed against the country dropped. This is an opportunity that cannot be missed, writes Ali Taiebnia, the country's minister of economic affairs and finance.