Companies wary of investment in Myanmar Western companies are holding back from investing in Myanmar, citing uncertainty over post-sanctions regulations in their home countries. US executives in particular complain of "mixed signals" from the Obama administration which, they say, is urging business to invest in Myanmar while warning of penalties should they break disclosure and licensing rules. The delays are occurring even as companies flock to visit the country after western governments suspended longstanding economic sanctions in April and May. An official at the chamber of commerce in Yangon estimated that in May alone more than 4,000 business people visited, in groups or individually, "and they all wanted meetings," he added. High-level business groups from the UK, France and the US led by top officials - including Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state, and UK trade minister Stephen Green - will visit Myanmar in coming weeks. Yet, only a few big western companies, led by General Electric, the largest US conglomerate, and Caterpillar, the biggest maker of earthmoving equipment, have taken literally Mrs Clinton's exhortation to invest in Myanmar when she announced the suspension of US sanctions last month. Adding to confusion are contradictory signals from Myanmar itself, with the government appealing for foreign investment while opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi last week warned executives attending the World Economic Forum in Bangkok that even the "best foreign investment law" could be useless due to the lack of a functioning judicial system. Uncertainty has also stemmed from prolonged delays in the issuance of Myanmar's new foreign investment law, initially expected in January but now likely to emerge in July. US companies talk about vaguely framed warnings from Washington - particularly around business activity that could affect human rights or touch on conflicts in ethnic areas - that have left them unclear about what they can and cannot do. In a further indication of the fragility of the transition process, Thein Sein, Myanmar's president, on Sunday announced a state of emergency after sectarian clashes in Rakhine, in the west of the country, and warned that ethnic and religious tensions could hamper democratic reforms. Unlike other cases where US sanctions have been lifted, the uncertainty of a temporary suspension has brought unusual disclosure and licensing requirements. What happens if it turns out your local business partner owns another company that supplies food to the military? We need to be clear on the rules," said a US manufacturing executive at the WEF meeting. Many western executives also expressed concern at the temporary suspension of investment restrictions by the US and Europe, saying they would wait until sanctions were reviewed in a year. "What if you've committed big money, and your government reimposes sanctions - what then?" asked an oil services executive. An area that could take off quickly is financial transactions. MasterCard Worldwide said recently it is "examining opportunities" in electronic payments systems but could not commit to a timeframe. A Visa spokesperson said: "The speed with which we are able to invest will depend on how quickly the US government is able to confirm that we are free to do so." A handful of big US companies remain undeterred. GE has applied to open an office in Myanmar after concluding deals in the healthcare and energy sectors, but is still trying to clarify approvals required by the US. The group is now finalising contracts to provide power generation equipment and upgrade existing equipment. Caterpillar has been supplying equipment in Myanmar for some years under a pre-sanctions arrangement. The easing of curbs, however, will enable it to provide financial services support to its distribution network. Stuart Dean, chief executive of GE's operations in the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, said the company is balancing observation of US and local rules with its "early mover advantage" in Myanmar. "A lot of countries around the world don't have great rule of law but they still need infrastructure and we do find ways to provide that," he said. We are not going to wait for full rule of law before we enter Myanmar; would we prefer to do business in countries that do have rule of law? Yes, but it's not going to stop us. So much of our strategy is geared towards emerging markets - people ask about the risk of going in, but we feel the risk of missing the opportunity is greater...Myanmar will not be an easy place to do business initially but we see it as a long-term opportunity. GE's power generation deals - to provide two portable gas turbines, and to upgrade 24 existing GE turbines sold under a pre-sanctions deal - would be worth "millions of dollars" he said. It would also boost power supply by about 15 per cent to Yangon, currently facing crippling power cuts, he added. But GE is eyeing bigger opportunities ahead in infrastructure and energy. "Also, the chance to help Myanmar develop its energy policy at an early stage is fantastic," Mr Dean added.