18th Asia Bond Markets Summit - Europe Edition 2023 | The Asset | 30 April 2023 | TBA, London

With China ending its zero-Covid policy, Asia is fully reopened to the world. The region is hoping for a rebound. Global investors have started to pivot following disappointing outcomes of the past year. Amid the threat of recession in the West – in contrast with opportunities for growth in the East – investors are shifting their asset allocation strategy.

The China conundrum has confounded investors for over a year – and sceptics have declared that fundamentals have changed irreversibly. On the other hand, with concrete policy change now underway, investors are prepared to revisit compelling investing themes given that, as the world’s second-largest economy, China is simply too big to ignore.

How the market shapes up as the country fully reopens will depend on regulatory reforms, especially in how the battered property sector will be transformed. Meanwhile, the accelerated approvals for asset managers to set up standalone operations in China is generating positive vibes indicating that the capital market will be an important pillar for China’s financial sector in the future.

Meanwhile, India is becoming more attractive as its bonds are set to be included in global indices. With inflation under control and its central bank likely to temper repo rate hikes giving impetus to bonds, yields have started to recover and companies have begun to relook at the bond market to raise finance.