Boom year seen for Asia
AN influx of foreign funds into the Asian region is to mark 1996 as a boom year for the region's markets, particularly Japan and Hong Kong, according to Jardine Fleming Unit Trusts.
Investment Services Director Cynthia Liu said: 'Japan and Hong Kong are likely to be the first ports of call for investors who made considerable profits in the US in 1995 and are now looking to divert liquidity elsewhere.' Hong Kong's market started the year with a 131-point rally, with foreign buying countering the downward pull caused by cash calls from a number of companies in the past weeks, brokers said.
An inflow of funds from the US was especially notable.
'The Hong Kong stock market is likely to be the primary destination for fund inflows into the Asian region,' Jardine Fleming said.
Hong Kong looked attractive on a fundamental basis with easing inflation and interest rates.
There were also signs of a recovery in the property market and the economy.
Share placements from Citic Pacific and Sun Hung Kai Properties would be pressing sentiment down in the short term.
Colin Armstrong, director of Jardine Fleming Holdings, said: 'We have been positive on the outlook for Japanese equities for the past six months, on expectations of an economic recovery, dramatic growth in corporate earnings and the continuing depreciation of the yen.
'During this period we have increased the weighting of Japan in our regional funds from less than 20 per cent to 65 per cent.'
