Speaking in Hong Kong, he said Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey and South Africa all have bright futures ahead of them: “Each has a large, young, growing population. Each has a diverse and dynamic economy. And each, in relative terms, is politically stable.”

If they imitate their BRIC predecessors – Brazil, Russia, India and China – who accounted for about half of global growth between 2000 and 2008, the Civets could provide a windfall for investors and confirm a shift in power from Western markets.

However, some market analysts remain sceptical, citing bad government, large budget and payments deficits and high inflation rates as particular concerns. Certainly, inflation rates in Egypt and Vietnam at 10% and 12%, respectively, and budget deficits as high as 8.7% and 7.7% of GDP could discourage some investors.