(Reuters) – For Jeff Immelt, the CEO of General Electric (GE.N), the 130 year-old American industrial behemoth, the financial crisis marked the end of the age of America’s economic dominance.

This blogger has noticed that there seems to be a level of pessimism regarding the American economy. Although it is currently going through economic turbulence, and has been for a while, the US economy, in this blogger’s opinion; remains one of best countries in the world for trade and economic activity. Those doing business in the USA may enjoy the benefits that come from the American financial, economic, and physical infrastructure. Hopefully, the optimism for which America has, in the past, been noted for will return once the economy returns to an “even keel”. Reuters continues:

But Mr. Immelt said the future will be different. For the next 25 years, he said, the American consumer “is not going to be the engine of global growth. It is going to be the billion people joining the middle class in Asia, it is going to be what the resource-rich countries do with their newfound wealth of high oil prices. That’s the game.”

A lot of that game will be played in China. At a moment when it is compulsory on the American right to pay homage to the exceptionalism of the United States, Mr. Immelt, a lifelong Republican, is matter-of-fact about China’s inevitable rise.

The interesting piece of information that this blogger noted in the aforementioned article was the fact that the G.E. CEO took notice of the fact that the middle class is growing rapidly in Asia. The thought of an Asian middle class numbering 1 billion or more is truly staggering when one takes into account the economic impact of such growth. As Asians in general become more affluent the side effects will likely be increased trade and economic activity as these newly minted members of the middle class use their new found wealth to make purchases of property, goods, and services (in Asia, the EU, UK, and the United States). The most poignant line of this Reuters article, in this blogger’s opinion was:

“It is going to be the biggest economy in the world,” Mr. Immelt said of China. “The only question is when.”

There is little doubt that China has an incredible capacity for growth and those looking international investment or business opportunities are well advised to research the Chinese market. That said, China does not represent the only country in Asia which has economic opportunities that are becoming more readily available to investors and entrepreneurs due to globalization. The Kingdom of Thailand, a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), has investment opportunities in the form of Thai Property, Thai Real Estate, and Thai businesses. Furthermore, for Americans conducting business in Thailand can prove profitable especially since the US-Thai Treaty of Amity allows Americans to own virtually 100% of a Thai Company with Amity Treaty certification (sometimes referred to as an Amity Company).

Meanwhile, the landlocked country of Laos recently opened a Lao Securities Exchange in an effort to raise capital through equity investment. The Kingdom of Cambodia recently announced that a Cambodian Stock Exchange is to be unveiled in mid-2011 while recent reports have noted that Burmese officials hope to be in the process of creating a Myanmar Stock Exchange as well. Such developments remain to be fully realized, but such examples clearly indicate that Mainland China is not the only “game in town” when it comes to investment opportunities and economic growth in Asia.

For related information please see: US Company Registration.

“Now we are our stock exchange in the process of establishing and developing Cambodian securities exchange which is going to be implemented in the middle of 2011, H.E Dr. Hean Sahip, deputy secretary general of ministry said in his speech during the workshop on IT for securities exchange in Phnom Penh.

The relatively small Southeast Asian Kingdom has been working on opening a securities exchange for some time. Now it would appear as though all of this effort may soon bear fruit, to quote DAP-news.com further:

“I would like to inform you that that to reach our objective of inaugural preparation of Cambodia securities exchange in the forth coming middle 2011, Cambodia securities exchange will start their operation soon  Canadia Tower, level 25”He added…

Some governmental agencies such as Autonomous zone of Sihanouk port, Electricity du Combodge, autonomous water supply authority of Phnom Penh, Telecom Cambodia will likely be listed in the stock exchange.Other dozen of private baking and companies will join the stock.

In the case of Laos, the opening of a stock exchange marks a significant step toward acquisition of investment capital as securities exchanges are often utilized in an effort to raise capital for companies wishing to expand. It would appear that the Kingdom of Cambodia offers substantial business opportunities to would-be investors of foreign origin. Some examples of the business opportunities in Cambodia are succinctly summed up on the BuyUSA.gov website:

Cambodia offers potential investment opportunities in tourism infrastructure and resorts; education; architecture, construction, and engineering services; household goods and appliances; agribusiness and food processing; used cars and automotive parts; power generation equipment; fast food and beverage franchises; pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, and medical equipment; and banking.

Clearly, there are business opportunities in the Kingdom of Cambodia, but those looking to conduct business in the Southeast Asian Kingdom may be prudent to conduct research or possibly retain the services of an attorney to conduct due diligence into proposed investments prior to making irrevocable business decisions. The same could easily be said for those looking to conduct business in the Kingdom of Thailand, Laos, or any jurisdiction with which a prospective investor is not familiar as research into the business and legal issues associated with a new undertaking in an unfamiliar jurisdiction can help ensure that risks are avoided which stem from unforeseen complications.

For related information please see: US Company Registration or US Visa Cambodia.