PORTFOLIO DIVERSIFICATION OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN EMERGING AND FRONTIER STOCK MARKETS: EVIDENCE FROM TEN ASIAN COUNTRIES

Abstract

In this paper, we take the case of Asian investors in any one out of ten Emerging and Frontier Asian (EFA) nations with an investment portfolio comprising of the MSCI of the home country, MSCIs of nine other Asian countries and stock market index of a developed nation. We examine their portfolio diversification opportunities for the period 2000 to 2013 after conditioning for oil price movements and global investor sentiments. Our empirical analyses imply significant opportunities to diversify within Asia. In particular, not all stock markets show a stable long run relationship. The unconditional correlations in the short run and conditioned regression linkages from VECMs are weak and mainly insignificant. Diversification opportunities for investors in some Asian nations improve after hedging for exchange rate movements. Further, we find that the portfolio examined here may lead to greater diversification gains than a portfolio without the nine other Asian countries.