Asia looks safe compared to the West

By Ezra Sun, a fund manager at Newton Two years ago, few investors would have perceived Asia to be a safe haven. Those investors are probably still correct in thinking so. Indeed, in today's markets, there seems no place to hide. However, when faced with an almost 24% drop in the MSCI AC World index, a 26% drop in the S&P 500 and an equal drop in the FTSE, a mere 6.9% slide in the MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex-Japan index makes Asia look decidedly safe. The reasons behind Asia's outperformance are manifold. One explanation lies in its attractive valuation levels, trading at a P/E of...