Sell-off in EM assets overdone: UBS CEO

[ZURICH] The sell-off in emerging-market assets that sent the benchmark equity index to the lowest valuation since the 2008 financial crisis may have gone too far, according to UBS AG chief executive officer Sergio Ermotti.

"What we are seeing right now is a lot of money exiting the emerging markets," Mr Ermotti, the head of Switzerland's biggest bank, said in Zurich on Bloomberg Television's "Countdown". "Short term, it looks a little bit overdone."

Global investors pulled US$6.3 billion from developing-nation equities in the week through Jan 29, the biggest outflow since August 2011, according to Barclays plc, citing data from EPFR Global. The retreat dragged down the MSCI Emerging Markets Index's valuation to 11 times reported earnings, a 40 per cent discount against the MSCI World Index, the widest gap since October 2008, data compiled by Bloomberg shows.