Why Asia’s equity and fixed income outlook shows resiliency amid a perfect storm
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While China has lifted some restrictions, there are still pressures on energy and commodities due to the Ukraine conflict. We remain cautious, expecting volatility to persist for the rest of the year.
We also anticipate attractive opportunities to arise from the bottoming of the cycle. China’s policy easing is supportive for equities, adding to the reasons why this market cannot be ignored in global allocations, when most of the rest of the world is tightening.
We remain overweight on Hong Kong and China, as we have been since the start of the pandemic, given that we see signs of a bottoming of the cycle. Some of our investments in manufacturing have been affected by the lockdowns in China. But because these companies have diversified their locations across China and Asia, the downside to their business has not been as significant as it has been for their competitors. As such, we continue to focus on the fundamentals of individual companies in making our investment decisions.
China equity valuations are attractive again
We are cautiously optimistic about China equities in the second half of 2022 and beyond. Current valuations offer reasonably attractive opportunities despite challenges in finding the bottom of the market. Hence, investors could look beyond near-term uncertainties and position for a mid- to long-term recovery.
That said, we do not expect China equities to rebound to the valuations seen at the beginning of 2021. The Covid outbreak may have structurally changed China’s growth trajectory. However, we believe investors should not lose sight of the underlying secular trends that could drive future earnings, such as digitalisation, ESG-related imperatives and rising middle-class consumption.
Current valuations present attractive opportunities
Asia credit fundamentals have remained largely steady, anchoring the asset class against volatility.
Unlike most of the developed world, further policy easing is on the cards in China as authorities seek to moderate the economic slowdown and stabilise the property sector. We believe this presents an opportunity to surgically select higher-quality issues in the high yield (HY) segment.
Credit fundamentals have held steady despite pressures from rising US and regional rates, and concerns about inflation’s impact on earnings. Given the short duration profile of Asia bonds in general, we think the interest rate trajectory in the US will have minimal impact on the asset class.
Nevertheless, we remain underweight duration. We believe recent volatility in the Asia HY market will subside over the next several months on the back of steady credit fundamentals for non-Chinese issuers. China's Covid-delayed recovery means more defaults are expected in the property sector before stabilisation measures have a wider impact.
This, together with Sri Lanka’s default in May, indicates the expected decline in the Asia bond default rate will be pushed to the first half of 2023 instead of this year.
Meanwhile, some non-China HY credits are benefitting from strong commodity prices and steady credit fundamentals. We continue to favour commodity names as inflation becomes a tailwind for the sector. We expect this strong commodity cycle to last longer due to geopolitical tensions and the reopening of many major economies post-Covid.
The reopening theme is strengthening, with Thailand and Indonesia among the latest investment grade (IG) sovereigns to announce significant relaxation to border measures. Economic momentum broadly remains healthy, with inflationary expectations uneven across Asia.
Flexibility and selectivity will remain the watchwords for the rest of the year. With strong fundamentals anchoring the market, Asia fixed income should offer investors the stability that may be lacking elsewhere.
Disclaimer
All investments involve risk, including the loss of principal amount invested. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Any views express represent the opinion of the manager and are subject to change. We are not soliciting or recommending any action based on this material. In Hong Kong, this document is issued by PineBridge Investments Asia Limited. This document has not been reviewed by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). Investors should note that the website www.pinebridge.com and any other websites referred to in this document has not been reviewed by the SFC. In Singapore, this document is issued by PineBridge Investments Singapore Limited (Company Reg. No. 199602054E), licensed and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This advertisement or publication has not been reviewed by the MAS. Investors should note that the website pinebridge.com and any other websites (including any contents therein) referred to in this document have not been reviewed or endorsed by the MAS.
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