Asian Market : The promise land for 2024 ?

Key Points, 

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted that the Asia Pacific region will grow at a rate of 4.2% in 2024, which is higher than the global economy’s 2.9%.
• The Nikkei 225, which is a benchmark index in Japan, was able to achieve the best performance in 2023. On the other hand, the Hang Seng Index, which is in Hong Kong, was the worst performer.

The year 2023 brought volatility to Asian markets due to various factors, such as rising interest rates, China’s slowdown, and inflation. According to data released by Refinitiv, the Nikkei 225 was able to gain about 28% in the year.

The Japanese stock market was able to gain due to the improving corporate results and growing optimism that the BOJ will soon end its easy monetary policy. On the other hand, the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong had its fourth straight year of decline. In addition, China’s stock market performance was also not good. The CSI 300, which is a measure of the country’s biggest companies, lost over 11% last year.

They see Asia’s continued growth and a promising outlook for 2024, which they believe will provide attractive opportunities for selective investors.

Despite the slow recovery in China, India is expected to continue growing at a steady pace, which is expected to provide investors with attractive opportunities. According to the IMF, it is forecasting a growth rate of 4.2% for Asia in 2024 and 4.6% for 2023.

According to Krishna, investors were surprised by various factors in 2023. Some of these included China’s slow recovery, the US’ improving economy, and the emergence of AI. Michael Strobaek, the chief investment officer of Lombard Odier, also noted that the global economy did not go through a recession.