Halister News

(Bloomberg) -- Emerging market equities will offer some of the best returns among stocks and bonds over the next five years, according to Geoff Lewis, senior Asia strategist at Manulife Asset Management.

• Global stock markets likely to post low- to mid-single digit gains from 2017 to 2021, Lewis says in a note
• There’s risk of correction in U.S. equities in 3-12 months
• Conditions for stocks to further outperform bonds remain in place over 12-18 months
• Advocates mid-year switch to more defensive strategy, retains preference for euro zone, Asia ex-Japan in global equity portfolios
• Read: Manulife Asset Likes Indonesia, India Bonds and Chinese Equities
• With few exceptions, government bonds in developed markets will be increasingly vulnerable to loss of fundamental support
  • Economic and policy conditions in 2H more likely to elicit higher developed market bond yields
• China’s bond market -- world’s third largest -- may see more rapid progress
  • “Foreign investor ownership is only 2.7 percent of a market equivalent in size to $243 billion, and there is room to grow”

To contact the reporter on this story: Colin Simpson in Hong Kong at csimpson42@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.net Will Davies