For the last two-and-a-half decades, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan has been making investments in Asia. Currently, the figure stands at approximately C$12.5 billion. Now, it is set to give more, allocating the funds to private investments. Ron Mock, CEO of OTTP, believes Asia investments are “a critically important part of our portfolio growth in the future. We’re Asian optimists. We see this region as a place that we absolutely have to be involved in. The private area is in a growth mode for us.
But before making the investments in Asia, it is important to proceed with caution. According to Market Realist, Asia is often viewed as “a land of opportunity.” The region features emerging and developing markets which translates into “a lot of hope and promise for investors.” Foreign investors are finding ETFs attractive, in particular the Vanguard Pacific (VPL). There is also the iShares MSCI All Country Asia ex-Japan Index ETF (AAXJ) as a great measuring tool. These are all helpful for those looking into investing in Asia.
Another potential issue for Asia investors is that not every market in the region is in the developing mode. One need just look at Japan as an example. In terms of China, while its economy has been doing well over the last few years, there are some issues attached to its equity markets that have not been performing all that well. So that needs to be considered as well.
When it comes to investments, this news indicates that Asia need not be seen as an entity. Split it up and look more specifically at Singapore, Hong Kong, etc.