Amundi has launched the Amundi Funds – Asia Income ESG Bond Fund, which invests across all Asian fixed income segments with a particular focus on credit and local rates.
The fund aims to generate high income by investing in a combination of corporate and sovereign issuers.
The fund will be managed by Joevin Teo, head of Asian fixed income and the emerging markets debt team.
Amundi noted that we are witnessing a marked shift in investment focus from the West to the East, while the Asian green, social and sustainability (GSS+) bond market is growing rapidly, with the region now counting for more than half of emerging market GSS+ bonds.
The fund is classified as SFDR Article 8 and will maintain a minimum allocation to GSS+ bonds. Furthermore, the investment team will monitor the portfolio’s carbon intensity per euro million of sales and ensure this amount falls under the investment universe average at all times.
“Emerging markets are expected to grow faster than developed markets, with Asia taking the lion’s share of this growth. As we navigate this ongoing market regime shift to a higher rate environment, the increased volatility and uneven repricings offer what we believe to be great investment opportunities for active and flexible asset managers like Amundi,” said Yerlan Syzdykov, head of emerging markets at Amundi.
“With a growing demand for green and social bonds in the region, the appeal for Asian bonds is strong and we are delighted to offer investors in Europe and Asia access to this maturing and increasingly diversified* market.”
