文莱原是东南亚一个经济上贫穷落后的小国，在过去相当长的时期内，当地居民主要以渔猎和农耕为生，自给自足的自然经济占统治地位。19世纪晚期文莱沦为英国的“保护国”后，自给自足的自然经济开始解体。英国为使文莱成为其原料供应地，加紧对文莱矿产资源进行勘探和开采，以石油生产为主的采矿业成为文莱经济最重要的组成部分。1929年在白拉奕区诗里亚镇发现石油后，特别是在20世纪六七十年代石油、天然气大量开采后，文莱的经济结构发生了根本性变化，石油和天然气开采业成为经济的支柱产业。石油、天然气的生产和销售为文莱政府带来丰厚的外汇收入，加之国家人口少，文莱国民经济迅速发展，人民生活水平大幅度提高，成为富甲一方的石油王国。
Brunei was originally a small, economically poor and backward country in Southeast Asia, and for a long time in the past, the local population mainly lived on fishing, hunting and farming, and the self-sufficient natural economy dominated. After Brunei became a British "protectorate" in the late 19th century, the self-sufficient natural economy began to disintegrate. In order to make Brunei its raw material supply, the United Kingdom stepped up the exploration and exploitation of Brunei's mineral resources, and the mining industry, which is mainly oil production, has become the most important part of Brunei's economy. After the discovery of oil in the town of Shiria in The Prachuap Rak Yi District in 1929, especially after the large-scale exploitation of oil and natural gas in the 1960s and 1970s, Brunei's economic structure underwent fundamental changes, and oil and gas extraction became a pillar industry of the economy. The production and sale of oil and natural gas has brought rich foreign exchange income to the Brunei government, coupled with the country's small population, Brunei's national economy has developed rapidly, and the people's living standards have been greatly improved, becoming an oil kingdom on the rich side.
