Asia Centric by Bloomberg Intelligence

The 2024 US election is set to be a rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, setting the stage for a heated several months. So why should investors across Asia start tuning into the election run-up? And is there any hope of salvaging the US-China relationship with either candidate? David Chao, Global Market Strategist (Asia Pacific) at Invesco, joins co-hosts John Lee and Katia Dmitrieva with h...

Success-hungry finance professionals have been gorging on India's boom, which shimmers with stories of multi-million dollar trading jobs, and private bankers demanding jackpot pay increases as they sell their talents to the highest bidder. Is India's moment really here? What are the challenges finance companies face in expanding into the subcontinent? Anil Sharma, Managing Partner of recruitment f...

What will it take to get global investors excited about China again? Is India still the best growth story for the next decade? And will corporate governance reform and inflation continue to power Japanese equities? One of Asia's most experienced investment strategists, Christopher Wood, global equity strategist at Jefferies and author of the widely-read "Greed and Fear" newsletter since 1996, rema...

Chronic conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East, stubborn global inflation, soaring military spending, and persistent tension with China haven’t stopped stocks from marching higher.  Are stocks ignoring geopolitical risk? Is a new investment narrative emerging? How can investors profit from the remarkable global growth in defense spending?  Sean Darby, equity strategist at Mizuho Securities shares...

China’s property crisis, its stock market swings and falling prices have dealt a body blow to Chinese consumers' confidence, and shock waves from their retrenchment are shaking up some of the world’s biggest luxury brands. Is China's new retail frugality here to stay? Or will its once-freewheeling consumer spending roar back with a vengeance? Bloomberg Intelligence's senior consumer analysts Cathe...

A chill has overcome the once-red hot electric-vehicle market. Demand is slowing, competition is growing, cash-strapped consumers are skeptical, and the EV market outlook is uncertain. Tesla has become the poster child for the industry’s ordeals, with slowing sales, a tumbling stock price, and China’s economic woes all converging into a grim picture. But other EV makers are also struggling, and th...

The world’s stock markets have made a routine of breaking records, with the Nikkei 225, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq all spending 2024’s first quarter soaring into uncharted territory. Exuberance is abundant, but so are the risks. Are the world’s equity markets rising too far too fast? Is it time to revisit safe-haven assets? And is the classic 60/40 asset allocation model still relevant today?...

The rush to board the AI bandwagon has powered America’s Magnificent Seven stocks to a level of investor excitement not seen since the 1990s dot-com bubble. Is artificial intelligence for real? How does the Magnificent Seven rank in terms of AI monetization? Can Asia tech stocks keep pace with their American counterparts? Mandeep Singh, Global Head of Technology Research at Bloomberg Intelligence...

A sea change is afoot in South Korea, where a new corporate governance code promises to overhaul the country’s business dynamics. Some believe that could help its stocks shake off the so-called “Korea Discount” as it tears a page from Japan’s playbook in a bid to mimic the Nikkei 225’s rejuvenation.  Investors have taken notice and have channelled more than $8 billion into Korean stocks during Jan...

China's challenges are snowballing. From its slumping stock market to its property crisis, to a generation lying flat, the outlook is daunting, and easy fixes are unlikely. The world's second largest economy also faces structural problems, including a shrinking population, high household debt and low consumer confidence. How will China's tough choices shape the road ahead, and what are the implica...

Evergrande has become the mother of all casualties in China’s real estate crisis, crumbling under the weight of its own debt, and leaving homebuyers and investors reeling. The latest twist in the Evergrande saga came this week when a Hong Kong judge ordered the property giant liquidated. The ruling comes more than two years after the developer first defaulted on a bond payment. Can Evergrande’s bo...

The attacks on cargo vessels plying the Red Sea have delivered the biggest blow to global trade since the Covid-19 pandemic. Drones, missiles, and gunfire from Houthi rebels are sending ships on costly and time consuming detours around Africa. Container ships are bearing the brunt of the impact, and the ensuing delays and soaring costs threaten to upend supply chains and rekindle the fires of infl...

Taiwan’s hotly contested presidential election was cast as a stark choice between two different destinies, but for the island’s voters, relations with mainland China are just part of the picture. Economic growth, jobs, and a path to prosperity are big issues for Taiwan’s more than 23 million people, especially its young adults, who’ve come of age facing the risk of conflict, a changing identity, a...

Asia’s investors are staring at a potential watershed year in 2024, which promises turning points, stumbling blocks, opportunities, and more than a few surprises. Falling rates appear likely, but when, how fast and how far the U.S. central bank will cut has investors guessing, with implications for Asian currencies, bonds and equities. Can China recapture the animal spirits that once made it the d...

Family offices -- they’re the secretive, go-anywhere asset managers that quietly steward fortunes for the ultra-rich. In Asia, Singapore has emerged as the new family office hot spot, wooing captains of industry, crypto whales, and Chinese billionaires with low taxes, favorable regulations, a business-friendly environment, and safety and security. The island has become home to more than 1,100 fami...

India has emerged as the hot, new growth opportunity for global investors. It's the world’s most populous country, and largest democracy. It’s home to a demographic swath of 600 million people younger than 30, and a booming economy growing by 7-8% a year. India’s energy and opportunity have made it a magnet for foreign capital, leaving many convinced that the highest-quality growth is yet to come....

Global real estate investors have been navigating a treacherous path, with many wondering where the markets will go next. In Hong Kong, interest rates have crushed home prices, sending some mortgages under water while its once jam-packed commercial real estate market struggles to fill space. When might the real estate winds shift? Will rates carry property values higher or lower? Where are the ris...

So-called weight-loss drugs are generating waves of hope and hype. Names such as Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro fall breathlessly from the lips of social media influencers, bringing promise and possibility to the one billion people the World Health Organization says suffer from obesity. Investors are already buying in, sending the market caps of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly soaring into the ranks of t...

Chinese shopping apps are shaking up online retail, with fast-fashion leader Shein and viral sensation discounter Temu setting the pace. Both are powering China’s exports by letting overseas consumers buy everything from clothing to digital gadgets directly from manufacturers, and at bargain prices few brick-and-mortar retailers can beat. Their flashy websites, aggressive marketing, and social med...

US-led sanctions on Chinese tech firms were meant to put a barrier between China and the cutting-edge of smartphone know-how. Little wonder, then, that Huawei drew a collective gasp when it revealed its new smartphone -- the Mate 60 Pro -- is powered by a homegrown, China-made processor. Almost overnight, the world woke up to the reality that China’s tech savvy was more advanced than many believed...

Hong Kong’s niche as a social and economic crossroads has framed its legend for decades. Now, a new generation of eager, young professionals from mainland China is rushing to Hong Kong to pursue similar dreams, filling the gap left behind by the city’s dwindling ranks of western expats. Their presence signals a seismic shift toward the city’s “mainlandization” and heralds the emergence of a compel...

The drumbeat of headlines about China resembles a litany of gloom and pessimism. A crisis in its property sector, high youth unemployment, faltering economic growth and soaring local government debt have raised questions about the future of the once-unstoppable Chinese juggernaut. Are China’s days as an economic powerhouse a thing of the past? Louis Kuijs, Asia-Pacific chief economist at S&P G...

Country Garden was once considered a leader among China's property developers. Now, a missed bond payment has turned it into the latest poster child for all that's wrong with the country's housing market.  Developers saddled with too much debt, not enough cash, faltering sales, nervous buyers and anxious creditors all add up to a renewed crisis of confidence. The ripple effect could reverberate be...

Asia's ETF industry continues to shake up the investment landscape, attracting $65 billion in inflows so far in 2023 to an impressive $1.3 trillion in assets under management. Asia's retail investors are giddy about artificial intelligence, but other themes such as K-Pop and the Metaverse give Asia's ETFs an entertaining twist with a dash of FOMO. Rebecca Sin, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intel...

Asia’s currency markets are struggling to make sense of a global economy in transition. Rising US interest rates stir risks of recession while falling rates in China reflect growing urgency to give its recovery greater traction. Meanwhile, investors are treading cautiously, ever-wary of pitfalls ranging from China’s beleaguered property sector to South Korea’s household debt. Where does this leave...