PIMCO's fixed income CIO reduces risk on $1trn portfolios as he warns of recession in Europe

Favours EMD to mitigate rising rates

Andrew Balls, global fixed income CIO at PIMCO, has said he is continuing to dial down risk across portfolios as issues such as China, rising populism and central bank policy continue to weaken the investment outlook.

Balls, who is CIO to the group's $1trn fixed income portfolios, said while the near-term political risks look manageable, pointing to the German and Italian elections, populism still remains a big risk for the investment outlook over the medium term. "If in the event of weaker growth in Europe we had a rise in populism and an election of a populist government, the governance issues in the eurozone would become a serious challenge. Populism remains a significant concern over the next three to five years." Another big risk to fixed income portfolios, Balls said, was the lessening centra...