30th May 2025 14:39
(Alliance News) - JPMorgan Asia Growth & Income Investment Trust PLC on Friday said its portfolio managers had a generally positive view on the outlook for Asian markets, despite posting a negative total return on net asset value.
The investor in Asia-Pacific entities said net asset value per share was 405.3 pence as at March 31, down 3.0% from 417.9p at September 30.
NAV total return was minus 1.1% in the six months to March 31, beating its benchmark, the MSCI AC Asia excluding Japan, which had a return of minus 2.2%.
The company said: "The board regularly discusses gearing with the portfolio managers. At the end of March 2025, the portfolio was 4.0% geared. This modest amount of leverage reflects the portfolio managers' generally positive view on the outlook for Asian markets."
JPMorgan Asia added: "There was considerable dispersion in performance by country. China and Singapore posted double digit returns over the period. China's performance was driven by signs of stabilisation as government stimulus measures in the second half of 2024 began to take effect. In addition, the launch of DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence start-up, drove a re-rating of stocks across the Chinese technology sector, as investors were surprised by Deepseek's advanced AI technology and low cost."
Looking ahead, Chair Richard Stagg said that it is likely that economic growth will be slower than previously expected, citing the new US administration's approach to trade policy.
More positively, he added: "That said, there are ample reasons to be optimistic about the opportunities offered by Asian equities in relative and absolute terms. Asian economies will continue to grow more rapidly than their Western counterparts, where lacklustre growth is likely to be further diminished by the threat of a trade war. Most important, the Chinese authorities are trying to stimulate their economy which is showing some signs of recovery."
JPMorgan Asia shares fell 0.6% to 366.82 pence each on Friday afternoon in London, giving it a market capitalisation of GBP258.4 million.
By Tom Budszus, Alliance News slot editor
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