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Nordea Asset Management AB bought financial stocks in Asia amid this month’s global rout in the sector, as it remains optimistic about their earnings growth prospects.
|“We have added to our insurance holdings in Asia,†Hilde Jenssen, Nordea’s head of fundamental equities, said in an interview in Singapore. “It’s clear when half a trillion is wiped off in market cap value globally in financials in about a week, it’s hard to not find something that’s interesting,†she said.
The fund is maintaining its positions in banks in India and Southeast Asia, “and will be monitoring closely and add opportunistically,†she added.
The rapid collapse of some banks in the US and troubles at Credit Suisse Group AG have sparked fears about the health of the global financial system, roiling markets this month. While Morgan Stanley sees margins in emerging Asia coming under pressure, others say it’s a chance to load up on bank stocks, with some economies projected to grow at 5% or more this year.
Compared to “extreme examples†in the US, Asian banks generally have lower duration risk and the non-performing loan ratios of Indian and Southeast Asian lenders have improved, Jenssen said. Meanwhile, there’s ample room for insurers to grow given the low penetration rate in Asia compared to the West, she said.
Nordea’s equity funds investing in the region have positions in India’s ICICI Bank Ltd and HDFC Bank Ltd as well as Bank Rakyat Indonesia Persero Tbk, according to latest data compiled by Bloomberg. Jenssen said the $256 billion asset manager is also investing in highly regulated European banks that are well capitalised. The Bloomberg Asia Pacific Banks Index is down 2.4% since March 8, when Silicon Valley Bank’s troubles began to roil markets, although it outperformed the 8.9% drop in its world peer.