EM 2020 outlook: 'Impulsive' Trump and other macro woes to persist

But growth and sentiment set to improve

Investors are preparing portfolios for stronger growth conditions and improved performance from emerging markets assets in 2020, despite no clear end in sight for the geopolitical uncertainty hampering emerging market assets in 2019 and other mounting macro concerns.

Equity market performance was hampered in 2019, largely owing to the ongoing trade tensions between the US and China, with the MSCI Emerging Markets index delivering a return of 13.8% during the year, in sterling terms, compared to the 21.7% return from the World, according to FE fundinfo. Five key themes for emerging markets in 2019 Emerging market GDP growth also slowed to an anticipated 3.7% this year, but Capital Economics research anticipates it to edge up to 3.9% in 2020. This is still notably short of the 4.5% figure seen in 2018 and rates achieved earlier in the decade, but...