Despite continued volatility there is no cause for alarm

Asia has been hard hit recently as investors take profits from the region, with last year's star performers, such as India and Indonesia, bearing the brunt of recent selling. Even so, the India Sensex as at 23 May 2006 was up 11.6% so far this year, having fallen almost 18% from its peak on 12 May, while the Jakarta Composite index was up 21.6% from the same time last year. Anyone who bought Indian shares 18 months ago would have doubled their money. However, at a fundamental level investors should still like what they see. True, the easy gains have been made across Asia as the markets ...