Analysts point out opportunities in Asia and Europe amid turbulent start to new year

A FEW weeks into a dramatic new year for financial markets that saw oil and copper plunges, Greece exit fears, a China correction, a Swiss franc surge and deflation worries, analysts are pointing out opportunities in Asian and European stocks.

Raymond Chan, fund manager Allianz Global Investors' chief investment officer for Asia-Pacific equities, told BT last Friday: "A lot of people in the West are still sceptical of reforms. We believe this is real, people should pay a lot of attention to them. For the first time you see big countries in Asia not only talking but now implementing reforms."

He likes insurance and green energy companies in China, as well as the robotics and automation sector, which Taiwan has exposure to. But he thinks the bigger opportunity is in India, which he thinks will grow faster than China in two years' time.

BlackRock's chief investment strategist Russ Koesterich told BT in a recent interview that he still favours Japan given aggressive stimulus and increasing returns on equity.

In Europe, reasonable valuations are balanced against a still soft recovery, he said in a recent note. "More aggressive central bank policy would be a positive catalyst while the situation in Ukraine remains a risk."