SHARE THIS Our scenario is fairly ugly for the 4Q, but has a strong silver lining thereafter. We are not optimistic about the global economy and investor returns reverting to normal for an extended period, but there should be clear intermediate term...
SHARE THIS This month we assess the trends in wages and salaries with significant change potentially in progress; we also discuss how changes at the BOJ may affect the market.
SHARE THIS Asian equities made a strong start to 2023, with the MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index returning 8.2% in US dollar (USD) terms in January, supported by a rebound in investor sentiment towards China.
SHARE THIS Growth prospects look to be improving—a sharp shift from late 2022 when the markets had strong conviction that a first half slowdown was to be followed by a better second half.
SHARE THIS Asian banks will be more insulated from the current global banking turmoil, in our view, thanks to smaller-scale rate hikes in Asia, prudent supervision by regional financial regulators, outsized capital adequacy ratios and sensible security...
SHARE THIS We have held on to our view that the “higher for longer” narrative is not necessarily bad for equities, as robust earnings are supported by a US economy that continues to grow at above-trend rates. However, we are also sympathetic to the...
SHARE THIS We expect 2024 to be a year of higher returns and lower volatility for Asian local government bonds as US Treasury yields are seen stabilising. We also see Asian currencies firming against the dollar in 2024 as the Federal Reserve’s rate...
SHARE THIS Considering that major tech companies are profitable, cash rich and cannot afford to lose out in the highly competitive AI race, spending on high-end computing and neural networks looks set to continue in 2024. This will likely create a...
SHARE THIS Although we believe that the prospects for the economy remain mostly unchanged, the outlook is softer at the margins, perhaps reflecting the tightening of financial conditions seen during the recent months. Over the past month, however,...
SHARE THIS Last year, global investors turned their attention firmly towards Japan as a way of increasing their Asia exposure while avoiding perceived geopolitical and regulatory risks linked to China, and amid the high inflation environment dominating...
SHARE THIS One of Japan’s more recent economic releases made us sit up and take notice. Within the very resilient Q4 capital expenditure figures released this week was one important reinforcing indicator of Japan’s structural recovery, or in the Bank...
SHARE THIS India remains the long-term growth story in Asia and continues to attract fresh investment flows. China, on the other hand, has become the value play waiting for positive catalysts to turnaround sentiment.
SHARE THIS On 13 August, the Global Investment Committee held an extraordinary session to review the impact of recent volatile market movements. We maintain our central scenario for positive GDP growth in most major economies, although we see...
SHARE THIS The Global Equity Team answers the following questions related to the key trends they see emerging: 1)does the AI investment theme still offer significant long-term potential? 2) will the market leadership broaden beyond technology names...
SHARE THIS We believe that investors should strive for a diversified global portfolio of quality companies that can thrive in an environment where the cost of capital may be higher than previously expected. Our collective experience of the pandemic...
SHARE THIS While 2024 was characterised by broad market gains (or “beta” returns) in Singapore, we expect 2025 to be more centred on generating excess returns (or “alpha”). We believe the service economy, represented by financial services and...
SHARE THIS Our focus on franchise and management quality allows us to look forward with optimism, whilst balance sheet quality and valuation discipline provide comfort for when the fireworks start for all the wrong reasons.
SHARE THIS While US equities stumbled in February, Asian ex Japan equities gained modestly, helped by continued positive momentum in Chinese tech stocks. China's tech has been the comeback story so far in 2025 after DeepSeek injected some liveliness...
SHARE THIS As the rest of the world contends with the geopolitical and economic implications of Trump 2.0, ASEAN presents a wealth of long-term investment opportunities, driven by strong fundamentals and supportive policies.
SHARE THIS While credit fundamentals and decent demand-supply technicals are supportive, we are wary of trade and geopolitical re-escalation risks. We are therefore inclined to take a more cautious and defensive approach over the near term.