Focus on next growth sectors in Asia: Nikko AM

THE next growth areas in Asia might not necessarily be in real estate, which was big 10 years ago, or technology, which is big now. They might be in healthcare, tourism, insurance and the environment, said Peter Sartori, head of Asian equity at fund manager Nikko AM.

"Asia is evolving, Asia is changing. This has major implications on how we should invest," he said at a media briefing yesterday.

In 1998, for example, real estate companies took up 20.1 per cent of the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index, while technology stocks took up just 6.4 per cent. Last year, the roles were reversed. Real estate companies constituted just 6.6 per cent of the index and technology stocks 20.2 per cent.