Value of Thai funds' foreign portfolios hits record

Bangkok

MAJOR Thai funds have increased the size of their foreign portfolios to a record, chasing higher returns and more investment options in the face of low-yielding domestic government bonds and a sputtering economy.

The value of foreign investment funds (FIFs) overseen by Thai asset management firms jumped 33.4 per cent in 2014 to 866 billion baht (S$36.5 billion), while funds focused on Thai investments grew at a slower pace of 22.4 per cent even as the value of domestic portfolios hit a historic high, according to data from the Association of Investment Management Companies.