The Malaysian prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, has again defended the way Asian countries handle their economies, in the face of attacks from what he called the new capitalists of the west.

He said that greed and the single-minded quest for profit was the main cause of the economic turmoil in the region.

He rejected accusations which he said came from the west that Asian governments condoned corruption and nepotism.

On Wednesday, the head of the IMF attacked what he called crony-capitalism being operated in Asia.