< The 2015 All-Asia Research Team
Total appearances: 23
Team debut: 1999In second place is the Bank of America Merrill Lynch team piloted by Paul Dewberry and Xiang Rong (Jacqueline) Li, which slips from No. 1. Forty-one-year-old Dewberry is headquartered in Singapore; while Li, 36, works out of Shanghai. Together with eight colleagues posted in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Manila and Seoul, they cover more than 90 regional industrials, winning plaudits for their client service and “strong through-the-cycle insights in the mining services and equipment-hire businesses,” in the words of one fund manager. Overall, the group is cautious on its sector, whose shares advanced 16.4 percent during the 12 months through April, against the broader market’s gain of 14.6 percent. Slowing economic growth in China, weaker Asian currencies and the prospect of rising U.S. interest rates are hampering performance, the researchers note. “But we also see opportunities in Indian industrial names, beneficiaries of China’s One Belt, One Road strategy and names that benefit from lower energy prices,” says Dewberry. Regarding particular market segments, Li advises that “for heavy industrials we are positive on the outlook for India, where we expect a combination of administrative reforms, pent-up demand and accelerating GDP growth to kick-start the country’s [capital expenditure] cycle.” Among transportation providers, he adds, “we expect airlines around the region to continue to do well [and] to retain most of the benefit of lower fuel prices, as capacity growth remains largely in check, driving sector earnings to their highest level since 2010.”