東南亞唯一的內陸國，曾受到法國殖民，現為全球僅存少數共產國家之一。人類發展指數列於全球中段，但在東南亞是倒數第四。越戰時期，美國為了同步打擊寮國的共產勢力，在寮國境內投下270萬顆炸彈，其中三分之一沒引爆，在寮國國內成了超大型地雷區，不僅帶來生命威脅，更阻礙國土開發。經濟發展緩慢，寮國證券交易所只有11家上市公司，每日交易量只有17萬美元，堪稱全世界最小的股市。

Year Founded: 1975

The only land-locked state in Southeast Asia and a former French colony, Laos is one of the few remaining communist countries in the world. It received a medium Human Development Index ranking but is the fourth most underdeveloped country in Southeast Asia. 

During the Vietnam War, to quash the communist forces in Laos, the US dropped two million tons of bombs on Laos’ land and one-third of them were not detonated. The aftermath is large stretches of minefields in Laos which not only puts lives in danger but also hinders land development. As the economy develops at a slow pace, there are only 11 listed companies on the Laos Securities Exchange. With a daily trading volume of only 170,000 US dollars, Laos can be said to have the smallest stock market in the world.