Asian bonds seen a haven in face of Fed tightening

Changing gear: A man walks past the Federal Reserve in Washington. Inflows into developing Asian bond markets have also swelled in 2017 as investors bet the world’s fastest-growing region will be able to better withstand the volatility and outflows unleashed by a tightening Federal Reserve.— Reuters

KUALA LUMPUR: The reflation trade is carving out refuges in some curious places, case in point: emerging Asian debt.

Credit-default swaps on the bonds of every Asian emerging market except for South Korea have tumbled this year, outperforming debt risk for the UK and for France, which has jumped amid the presidential election campaign. Inflows into developing Asian bond markets have also swelled in 2017 as investors bet the world’s fastest-growing region will be able to better withstand the volatility and outflows unleashed by a tightening Federal Reserve.