< The 2016 All-Asia Research Team

Total appearances: 7

Team debut: 1997

Soo Chong Lim and his five-person credit strategy group at J.P. Morgan repeat at No. 3. Working out of Hong Kong, the researchers provide especially valuable client service, “sending me daily e-mails citing the most relevant happenings regarding my Asian issuers,” one portfolio manager observes. “They are incredibly accommodating and always get back to me on inbound queries.” Lim and his colleagues are projecting that higher-quality debt securities will offer greater potential than lower-rated instruments in the months ahead. They therefore recommend that investors favor “investment-grade corporates as a defensive play, given their strong credit profiles.” With valuations that are “not too stretched” and “strong technicals,” thanks to rising demand from local investors, the 53-year-old strategist reports, these issues are well suited to withstand a challenging macro environment. Specifically, he adds, “we are overweight strategically important [state-owned enterprises] in China, the lower part of the capital structure of ‘Big Three’ Chinese banks, Indian corporates, Philippines corporates and selected Indonesian corporates.” At the same time, J.P. Morgan is bearish on high-yield corporate credits. Companies in China’s property sector present especially high risk, Lim says, “due to their stretched valuations, increased subordination risks from higher onshore borrowings and vulnerability to slower economic growth.”