Speaking in Sydney on Wednesday, Investec Asset Management co-head of emerging market fixed income Werner Gey van Pittius pointed to Latin America as an area within emerging markets that could present opportunities for investors.
“As a region, [Latin America] is more insulated to the trade spat than Asia or [Central Europe] for that matter,” Mr Gey van Pittius said.
He pointed specifically to Mexico, Argentina, Columbia and Brazil as “idiosyncratic drivers in [Latin America] at the moment”.
Mexico’s President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who was elected on 2 July, has been “talking very market positive and the assets are reacting likewise,” Mr Gey van Pittius said.
He added that in a meeting with Mexico’s deputy minister of finance Vanessa Rubio earlier in the year, she was giving President-Elect Obrador’s party a “clear running into for when they take over in December” and “giving them a clean slate”.
“The fiscal position looks very strong, so this is great news to hear.”
Mr Gey van Pittius also commented that Columbia had been “a little bit of a darling in Latin America”.
“We love Columbia, we have for a long time; [newly elected President] Iván Duque came in and took over from [former president Juan Manuel] Santos. A clear win, very good mandate.”
The asset manager also recently shifted its stance on Brazil from neutral to positive following presidential candidate Geraldo Alckmin’s “shrewd” selection of running mate, Mr Gey van Pittius added.
