His own reforms, such as introducing a simplified, single-rate foreign-exchange mechanism, private banks and mobile phones, remain on the drawing-board.

ECONOMIST: Syria

The government has abolished jail terms for those caught dealing in foreign currency, offered extra incentives for private investment and brought the official exchange rate closer to the black-market one.

ECONOMIST: Syria

Among them: hedge funds, untraded securities, foreign-exchange contracts, precious-metal bullion, tax liens, natural-gas wells, private mortgages and other secured debt, movie partnerships, cattle, fishing rights and even investments in bull semen.

WSJ: IRAs Get Sexier