The global economy should continue to lend support to credit fundamentals in the second half of the year and beyond, while the inflation outlook should keep monetary policy stable, HSBC Global Asset Management Ltd said on Thursday.
HSBC expects the world economy to expand 3.3 percent this year and grow 3.1 percent next year, although the pace might vary in different regions, New York-based senior product specialist Julian Moore told a media briefing in Taipei.
“Corporate earnings have been strong and revenue growth has remained solid, despite ongoing uncertainty,” Moore told reporters on his first leg of an Asian tour that would also take him to Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan.
The US is forecast to see GDP growth of 2.9 percent this year and 2.6 percent next year, outperforming that of the eurozone and the UK in both periods, Moore said.
HSBC is looking at 4.8 percent growth for the Asia-Pacific region this year and a 4.7 percent expansion next year, making it the best performer by growth rate, he said.
Global consumer prices might rise by 2.9 percent this year and ease to 2.7 percent next year, Moore said.
Inflation might rise 2.5 percent in the US this year and slow to 2.2 percent next year, higher than the 1.7 percent and 1.6 percent predicted for the eurozone, he said.
That is because crude oil prices would hold relatively stable, with some OPEC countries increasing oil production and the US sanctions on Iran reducing supply, Moore added.
Against this backdrop, global central banks would keep monetary policy stable, while the US Federal Reserve might move on a slow and steady trajectory, Moore said, adding that HSBC expects one more interest rate hike by the Fed this year, likely next month.
“A faster [tightening] pace would have negative impact on global financial markets,” Moore said.
HSBC is overweighting US bonds and underweighting debts in Europe because the former enjoys more attractive credit fundamentals in terms of valuations, default rates and yields, he said.
The supply of new US investment-grade equities has remained strong this year, following a record-breaking volume last year, Moore said, adding that the continued global search for yields is favorable for credit markets.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last