German businesses set sights on Central Asia and Mongolia – Commerzbank

German businesses set sights on Central Asia and Mongolia: With Commerzbank forecasting that  the republics of Central Asia and Mongolia to outperform the majority of countries in the next few years, the German business community expects the number of investment opportunities in the region to increase as well.  A new report from the bank, Insights:Central Asia and Mongolia concludes that the  economic significance of these countries and Mongolia will increase further, even if the boom seen in past years is probably over for the time being.
“As a result of the proximity to China and Russia, the vast amount of catching-up vis-à-vis the industrialised nations, high foreign investment, and the long period of excellent global economic development, Central Asia and Mongolia have been able to rapidly industrialise and post high growth figures since the start of the new millennium,” said Rainer Schäfer, the bank’s head of country risk analysis.
“In the majority of these countries, raw materials continue to dominate foreign trade and foreign exchange inflow. The reserves of natural gas, gold, and copper, as well as the production of cotton, are of global significance; yet development in this area is not over by far, despite significant infrastructure investment taking place. Greater diversification with a simultaneous reduction in the high degree of government regulation is necessary so as to secure long-term prosperity in the Central Asian region.”
Despite the dynamic growth rates seen in past years, Commerzbank believes that the potential cooperation between Germany – a major exporter and high-tech leader – and Central Asia/Mongolia has not yet been tapped in full. “We assume that in the future economic growth in the region will be considerably higher than the global average, and that, as a result, business relations with Germany will be further intensified,” said Axel Bommersheim, regional head at Commerzbank – financial institutions.