Coverage highlights 2024: asset class performance

Gold is poised for its best annual performance in more than a decade. The yellow metal was up 28% through November, according to the World Gold Council.

 

The Federal Reserve's shift toward an interest rate cutting cycle has enhanced the appeal of assets like gold, while geopolitical risks in the Middle East and the US presidential election have boosted safe-haven demand.

 

Market participants remain optimistic on the precious metal, predicting the possibility that gold trading could exceed $3,000 per ounce.

 

Central banks were likely to continue to increase allocation in gold bullion as a reserve in the coming years, given the higher geopolitical, inflation, and market risks, fund managers told AsianInvestor.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong stocks came under the spotlight in the second half of 2024 following the news that China would introduce a series of easing measures including curbing restrictions across real estate. The Chinese property market has been in a downturn since 2021.  

 

While fund managers were positive about the outlook for sectors relating to consumption, the consensus was that Hong Kong’s stock market recovery and the inflow of foreign capital would largely depend on China’s economic performance.

In 2024, Chinese equities failed to stage a real rebound. Despite a brief rally following the stimulus announced in September, two-thirds of any gains were erased by the end of November.

 

Analysts and investment managers largely remained neutral when AsianInvestor reached out for comments on the outlook for Chinese stocks in September, acknowledging the rebound was likely to be short-term.

 

China needs to expand fiscal policy and implement reforms to boost consumption, which could pave the way for a longer-term rebound in the stock market.

A weaker yen had been good for Japan’s major exporters, inflating their earnings and making Japanese products more competitive globally. The rock-bottom interest rates that had kept the yen weak were long a cornerstone of Japanese economic policy.

 

But as the market scrutinised the yen's trajectory – including its impact on domestic equities and economic growth, views diverged on whether a weaker currency would be a tailwind or headwind for the market.

 

Read more: Market Views: Will yen weakness continue to bolster Japanese equities?

 

A growing private credit industry in Singapore is helping fund sponsors as they look to create Asia-specific offerings, attracting asset owners from Asia Pacific and other regions.

 

Private credit, which involves lending to companies by institutions other than banks, has grown rapidly in recent months, as stricter regulations following the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) crisis in 2023 make it more costly for traditional lenders to finance riskier loans.

 

The Asia Pacific region is gradually developing its own private credit industry, which is attracting institutional investors from other parts of the world.