BW Communities

HSBC Seeing Inflows Into Asian Fixed Income Funds

BW Online Bureau Nov 08, 2014

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><root available-locales="en_US," default-locale="en_US"><static-content language-id="en_US"><![CDATA[HSBC's asset management arm is still seeing net inflows into its Asian funds even with the current market volatility, with investors increasingly picking fixed income over equities, a senior executive said on Thursday. There is also growing interest in Asian high-dividend-yielding stocks, with the recent market correction pushing investors towards such funds, Joanna Munro, the Asian chief executive of HSBC Asset Management, told the Reuters Global Wealth Management Summit in Hong Kong. "Many retail investors now want to see the safety of a monthly income from their funds, which gives them comfort," she said. "Demand for emerging markets is still strong, but generally the trend is towards products with an income." HSBC's asset management arm in Asia had over $60 billion in total assets under management at the end of June. Globally, it had over $450 billion in AUM at the end of the first half of this year. The investment manager is also looking to setting up an offshore yuan fund targeted at North American institutional investors, following a strong response from European investors for a similar fund based in Luxembourg. The recent volatility in the offshore yuan market has also not dampened investor interest in putting their money into funds denominated in the Chinese currency, Munro said. "In Hong Kong, you can buy renminbi off the street and hold on to it," she said, referring to the Chinese currency by its other name. "In the U.S. and Europe, it isn't that accessible so this is going to be a very attractive asset class." She also said she was still overweight equities, with many stocks looking cheap following the recent market volatility. "In 2009, people came back to risky assets very quickly after the crash," Munro said. "It can be difficult with so much confusion, but take a step back and look at the long-term fundamentals." (Reuters)