From the Asian equity desk at Nikko Asset Management.
A robust global economy and monetary policy tightening could benefit export-oriented economies in Asia. Coupled with a recovery of consumption within the region, we continue to believe that Asian equities provide better earnings growth prospects at a more attractive valuation relative to developed markets.
By Nizam Hamid, ETF Strategist at WisdomTree in Europe.
After US equities, Japanese equities are the second largest country weighting in the MSCI World Index, at close to 9% as of the end of October 2017. As such, Japan is an important allocation for many investors. However, the country has unique economic and equity market attributes, and therefore it’s paramount that investors find an appropriate investment solution.
Lyxor has cross-listed the Lyxor SG Japan Quality Income UCITS ETF (SGQJ SW) on SIX Swiss Exchange. The fund was launched in September this year and provides access to high-quality Japanese companies that pay high dividends.
FTSE Russell, one of the biggest players in the ETF indexing space, has announced the expansion of its environmental, social and governance (ESG) equity index offering with the launch of the FTSE Global Climate Index Series and the FTSE ESG Index Series.
By John Vail, chief global strategist, Nikko Asset Management (Nikko is the second largest ETF provider in Asia with over ¥4 trillion in ETF assets under management).
Despite all the fanfare, Japan never did truly move to a negative policy interest rate. When announced in January 2016, negative policy rates were only applied to bank reserves at the BOJ that were deemed excessive.
Deutsche Asset Management has unveiled a low-cost suite of US-listed ETFs designed to offer investors access to various segments of the international (ex-US) equity market. Fiona Bassett, head of passive asset management in the Americas, commented: “Our European heritage mean that we are well-positioned to bring meaningful efficiencies and cost savings to US investors for these exposures.”
By Jesper Koll, head of Japan at WisdomTree.
In the world of politics and policy making, Japan has become the envy of the world. The snap election got “Team Abe” re-elected with a strong majority and they will be controlling parliament with basically the same two-thirds super majority they had before. Stability, continuity and consistency of a strong pro-growth and pro-business agenda is poised to be rewarded with a growing “Japan Premium” in financial markets.
By Jesper Koll, WisdomTree’s head of Japan.
Japan’s upcoming election is poised to usher in a new era of policy competition and political accountability. Structural reform in general, supply-side reform in particular, is poised to accelerate.
MSCI has announced the launch of a new range of indices, the MSCI Factor ESG Target Index Series, designed to provide exposure to target factors while integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) stock selection filters. Diana Tidd, head of index at MSCI, commented: “MSCI is seen as a thought leader in ESG and factor investing, and this new suite of indexes helps our clients integrate ESG while still focusing on the benefits of Factor Investing.”
Lyxor has expanded its popular suite of quality income ETFs with the launch of the Lyxor SG Japan Quality Income UCITS ETF. Being rolled out on the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Paris, the multi-factor smart beta ETF offers investors exposure to high-quality Japanese stocks (excluding financials) that also pay high dividends. The ETF tracks the SG Japan Quality Income Index which uses a three-step smart beta process designed by Andrew Lapthorne, Global Quantitative Research Strategist at Societe Generale.