Asia ETF News for the Past Year
Asia Can Boost Economic Resilience Amid Surging Trade Tensions
April 24, 2025-Stronger regional economic ties can help build resilience during a time of growing policy uncertainty
As the global economic system is being reset, US tariffs are the highest in a century-with some of the steepest aimed at Asia. A leader in global trade, Asia accounted for nearly 60 percent of global growth in 2024. However, the region's successful growth model, based on trade liberalization and integration into value chains, faces mounting challenges.
While some levies have been paused, tensions between the United States and China have escalated significantly, as has trade policy uncertainty in general.
Against this backdrop, the outlook for Asia and the Pacific has dimmed. In our reference forecast, we project growth will slow to 3.9 percent this year from 4.6 percent last year. The downgrade of 0.5 percentage point, our sharpest since the pandemic, reflects weaker global demand, reduced trade, tighter financial conditions, and heightened uncertainty. We project 4 percent growth in 2026, also slower than previously forecast.
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Source: imf.org
Low-Cost ETFs and Long-Term Capital Funds Drive High-Dividend Strategies in A-Share Market
April 24, 2025-In 2024, the A-share market achieved a historic milestone with total dividend payouts reaching RMB 2.4 trillion (US$ 338 billion). As of April 13, 1,156 listed companies had announced dividend plans amounting up to RMB 1.13 trillion (US$ 160 billion). Meanwhile, the dividend yield of the CSI 300 Index and CSI Dividend Index has reached 3.5% and 6.3%, highlighting strong cash distributions.
On April 28, E Fund Management ("E Fund"), the largest mutual fund manager in China, will launch E Fund CSI Dividend Value ETF (Code: 563700), the first ETF tracking the CSI Dividend Value Index, expanding its range of low-cost dividend ETFs.
In the midst of trade tensions, dividend indices such as the CSI Dividend Index and the CSI Dividend Low Volatility Index are gaining traction. These indices focus on domestically oriented sectors with low trade sensitivity-overseas revenue contributions in the first half of 2024 are just 6.3% and 4.3%, compared to 11% for the CSI 300 Index.
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Source: E Fund Management
China's top banks bulk up liquidity as global peers trim buffers US G-Sibs continue to trail with lowest median LCR since 2021
April 24, 2025--The median liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) across the 29 global systemically important banks (G-Sibs) fell by 2.14 percentage points in 2024 to 131%-the lowest level since Q1 2020.
A Risk Quantum analysis of the latest publicly available LCR disclosures shows that only two of the seven jurisdictions home to G-Sibs posted increases in their median LCRs over last year: Canada, with a modest rise of 0.5pp to 133%, and China, where the median surged 11.8pp to 140.3%- the country's highest reading.
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Source: oecd.org
South Asia's Growth Prospects Dimming Amid Global Uncertainty
April 23, 2025—Increasing domestic revenues key to stronger fiscal buffers
Amid increasing uncertainty in the global economy, South Asia's growth prospects have weakened, with projections downgraded in most countries in the region. Stepping up domestic revenue mobilization could help the region strengthen fragile fiscal positions and increase resilience against future shocks, says the World Bank in its twice-yearly regional outlook.
Released today, the latest South Asia Development Update, Taxing Times, projects regional growth to slow to 5.8 percent in 2025-0.4 percentage points below October projections-before ticking up to 6.1 percent in 2026. This outlook is subject to heightened risks, including from a highly uncertain global landscape, combined with domestic vulnerabilities including constrained fiscal space.
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Source: World Bank
KB Asset Management to Launch KB RISE US Natural Gas Value Chain ETF Tracking the Solactive US Natural Gas Value Chain Index
April 22, 2025- Solactive is pleased to continue its partnership with KB Asset Management with the upcoming launch of KB RISE US Natural Gas Value Chain ETF, tracking the Solactive US Natural Gas Value Chain Index. This ETF offers investors a comprehensive approach to the US natural gas sector, providing exposure to companies operating across the entire natural gas value chain, from production to infrastructure and export.
As natural gas plays an increasingly central role in the global energy transition, the sector continues to attract the attention of investors worldwide. In 2024, global gas demand is expected to increase by approximately 2.8%, significantly outpacing the average growth rate for the decade, driven primarily by rising consumption in Asia. With long-term LNG demand bolstered by global energy security concerns and decarbonization efforts, investment in gas infrastructure, such as pipelines and LNG terminals, has accelerated. The United States has made decade-long investments in LNG facilities, reaffirming the strategic importance of natural gas in energy portfolios.
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Source: Solactive AG
India's retail stock investors keep faith despite foreign outflows
April 21, 2025--Rise in passive funds and long-term investments shows country's burgeoning equity culture
Growing up in New Delhi, 38-year-old health worker Nausheen Zaidi said her parents invested in fixed deposits, life insurance and land.
But after her husband introduced her to the stock market in 2012, Zaidi started small there, putting money into mutual funds, later investing Rs30,000 ($350) during the pandemic and "tasted blood", she recalls. Her investments have quadrupled in value since, Zaidi says, and she carries on dividing her monthly savings between mutual funds and equities.
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Source: ft.com
Indxx Licenses India Digital Select 5 NTR Index & India Large-Cap Growth Select 5 NTR Index to KB Securities in Korea
April 11, 2025-Indxx is pleased to announce the licensing of its Indxx India Digital Select 5 NTR Index and Indxx India Large-Cap Growth Select 5 NTR Index to KB Securities as the underlying benchmarks for two funds. The KB India Digital Select 5 ETN (Ticker: KRG580000674) and KB India Large-Cap Growth Select 5 ETN (Ticker: KRG580000666), which track the Indxx India Digital Select 5 NTR Index and Indxx India Large-Cap Growth Select 5 NTR Index, respectively, began trading on the Korea Exchange today.
The Indxx India Digital Select 5 NTR Index tracks the performance of Top 5 Indian companies that focus on digital transformation across sectors such as e-commerce, fintech, travel booking, online food delivery and education.
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Source: fox59.com
11 new passive funds tracking Nifty Indices launched in Japan and Korea in FY 2024-25
April 8, 2025-In FY 2024-25, a total of 11 new passive funds (exchange traded funds and index funds) tracking Nifty Indices were launched in Japan and Korea. Of these, 9 funds track the Nifty 50 Index, while one tracks the Nifty India Corporate Group Index-Tata Group 25% and another tracks the Nifty Midcap 50 Index.
Presently, there are around 33 passive funds tracking Nifty Indices outside India with a total AUM of USD 4.3 billion. These products have been launched by large global asset managers.
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Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com
Korea's Rapid Aging Doesn't Have to Be Economic Destiny
April 3, 2025--Boosting AI adoption, increasing labor participation, and allocating resources more efficiently can help offset the economic drag from an aging population
Strong economic fundamentals and sound macroeconomic policies have helped the Korean economy through multiple shocks in recent years. However, potential growth has slowed more quickly than in other major advanced economies, and the economic expansion is likely to moderate this year.
The country also is aging more rapidly than almost all others. That's likely to reduce the labor supply and weigh on investment demand, further lowering growth and diminishing living standards. Aging could shrink the labor force by more than a quarter by 2050, leading to an average annual decline of 0.67 percentage point in potential growth, according to our latest Article IV report.
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Source: IMF
Japan: 2025 Article IV Consultation
April 2, 2025-Summary
After three decades of near-zero inflation, signs are growing that Japan's economy is reaching a new equilibrium with inflation sustained at the Bank of Japan's 2 percent headline inflation target.
But Japan continues to face challenges, including from its aging population and high public debt.
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Source: IMF.org
