As the global economic balance of power shifts from west to east, international financial centres in Asia are growing in prominence at the expense of their developed world counterparts. But is this shift a permanent one?

Indonesia has achieved significant economic growth in the past three years and now, with the help of a new development plan, its government has set the ambitious target of transforming the country into a major economic power by 2025. Can Indonesia compete on the same stage as Asia's behemoth economies such as India and China, or will the basic issues of infrastructure and inflation continue to hold it back?

As the BRIC countries – Brazil, Russia, India and China – realise the decade-old prediction that they would become economic superpowers, attention now turns to the global economies that will follow them.

While South Korean firms have profited greatly from making investments abroad, the country's GDP is failing to reflect their success. If the domestic economy is to grow in the same way as the large conglomerates, the South Korean government must look to close the gap between investments going in and out of the country by attracting more FDI.

The deal that ended with the building of a $1bn assembly plant for South Korean car manufacturer Kia in a rural US state has had wide-reaching implications, both economic and cultural. And although there has been a price to pay on both sides, it appears to be outweighed by the benefits