Safe as houses is a saying unlikely to resonate with investors in Asian bond markets. Not only have they seen explosive volumes for the first month of the year, especially in the junk bond market, but this wave of issues has been dominated by Chinese property groups – long one of the riskier sectors in investors’ minds.
Bond markets around the world are beset by commentary worrying about a price bubble as low interest rates almost everywhere, but led by the US, have driven investors on a hunt for yield.
In Asian high-yield markets more than anywhere else, investors face three distinct risks, any one of which could blow a hole in their bond portfolios. Borrowers might default, interest rates could start to rise, or most immediately, liquidity could dry up if another asset class, namely equities, starts to look more attractive.