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Mahathir Mohamad, prime minister of Malaysia, shows an increasing tendency to talk rubbish. Commenting in early September on foreign investor selling of Malaysian stocks and the ringgit, he said: "They are racists. I say it openly. They are not happy to see us prosper."

Singling out the individual may appear out of keeping with the vogue for emphasizing the team. But in China, having the right individual on board is the most important factor in business success.

When Gao Xi-Qing arrived in Hong Kong in August his arrival was greeted by a typhoon called Victor. Staff at Bank of China already acknowledge that typhoon Gao, their new boss, is set to shake things up more than your average king-wind.

A budget, a new credit policy and a report into currency convertibility, all introduced in the first half of this year, have boosted investor confidence. Phillip Moore analyzes their significance.

For emerging-market bond investors in the know, the former Soviet Union - especially central Asia - is the place to be. Debt markets have rallied across the board, yields are mostly buoyant, and currencies have held their own against the dollar. But title and settlement can sometimes be a little hairy. Theodore Kim investigates the excitement.

Regional governments are taking back control of local businesses in the name of saving jobs and preventing foreign speculators from taking over. While some observers regard this as an undesirable move, things could be worse. Renationalization, the bogey which haunted Russia's first few years of market reform, has melted away as the Kremlin moves to sell whatever mineral fortunes it has left. But relocalization is just gathering steam.

Wang Qishan is president of People's Construction Bank of China and chairman of cicc, its investment-banking joint venture with Morgan Stanley. His banking group is the third biggest in China by assets and employs half a million people. He was formerly a deputy governor of the People's Bank of China and is very highly regarded by China's economic chief, deputy premier Zhu Rongji - so much so that he's shortlisted to be the next central bank governor. He spoke frankly to Steven Irvine about Morgan Stanley, the joint venture and investment banking.

Next month marks the biggest change to London's stock market since Big Bang of 1986. On October 20 the London Stock Exchange (LSE) will replace its current quote-driven system of market-makers with an electronic order book - initially for the market's top 100 shares and later, perhaps, for the whole market. This innovation, accompanied by a number of other changes to trading practices and regulations, will have a major impact on both the liquidity and transparency of the stock market, But it may, inadvertently, erode the LSE's virtual monopoly on securities trading in the UK.

Did Bankers Trust buy Alex Brown to make itself more attractive to a potential buyer? And should NationsBank buy First Chicago to give it more bargaining power in any future merger talks, possibly with BankAmerica? As America awaits its biggest-ever banking mergers, such are the advanced strategies under discussion. All will become clear after the final round of mega-mergers, reports Peter Lee.

Belt-tightening is not easy, particularly when the belt is an imported fine leather one with a high-priced Louis Vuitton label. As the IMF urges financial self-control, Thailand's elite are finding the austerity package hard to swallow.

A special report prepared by the Budapest Stock Exchange.