Navigator: Reading the road

Nick:
Gargi, welcome to Asia.

We're excited to have you here.

Gargi:
Excited to be here, Nick.

Nick:
Obviously, navigating volatility has been a big part of markets this year and how investors are thinking about things.

So what we've prepared is a couple of True or False questions, which are going to touch on exactly this theme.

Gargi:
OK.

Nick:
True or False?

Around the world, stock markets use the same color system: green signals stocks are going up and red signals stocks are going down.

Gargi:
Oh, this feels like a trick question.

I'm going to say true.

Nick:
It's actually false.

And what this touches upon is that markets, depending on how you're looking at them, can give you very different answers.

Can you talk us through maybe some of those growth opportunities that may be hiding under the hood, or where depending on how you look at the market, it can look very different?

Gargi:
Sure.

Something that we focus on in Investment Directions is actually thinking about opportunities in AI, around AI and beyond AI.

Within AI, obviously it's looking at things like semiconductors, playing for that compute, the memory trade.

Just around AI, this is very much the story of building out that AI infrastructure.

So think sustainable energy, think power, think about AI infrastructure. But also healthcare, which we think is another beneficiary of AI and can be a good source of growth in your portfolio.

And then beyond AI, the great thing that's happening right now is earnings are broadening out.

So really playing for that broadening-out theme that started in the beginning of 2026, but is still very much continuing now.

Nick:
Second True or False question:

Singapore receives more annual rainfall than London and New York combined.

Gargi:
True.

It is true.

Yes, that one I knew.

Nick:
So in this sense, different market conditions can create different opportunities.

How can investors potentially turn the volatility that we're seeing in markets into those opportunities?

Gargi:
Yeah, so two ways to think about this.

The first is today's volatility in the equity market.

That's giving us an opportunity to actually use the volatility in equity by using call options to write equity income.

The second is the volatility in the fixed income market that has resulted in higher interest rates.

And we can actually use that in our favor by allocating to fixed income bonds, especially within the Asian markets, and using income as a resilient part of your portfolio, earning income especially in the very front end and the belly of the curve.

Nick:
We're one for one.

So this is our third one. We'll see how you come out on top.

True or False?

Hong Kong is home to the largest number of skyscrapers designed to remain still during typhoons.

Gargi:
True.

Nick:
False.

Gargi:
Oh, God, no.

Nick:
Large buildings, especially skyscrapers, are actually meant to sway during typhoons, not stay still.

OK, so in that sense, the goal is not to eliminate movement.

It's actually to go and sway with the markets.

Can you talk toward maybe some of the diversification aspects of how investors can go and sway with markets?

Gargi:
So one of the themes we've talked about in Investment Directions is this idea of stocks and bonds moving in the same direction.

So there's much more of a need for adding something different, both within your equity sleeve and when looking at the multi-asset or equity and fixed income sleeves.

From a whole portfolio lens, adding assets like commodities, adding gold in particular as that diversifying source.

And then within the equity sleeve, thinking about diversification without taking the directionality of the market.

So really having things like liquid alternatives that can go long and short, which allows you to get returns without taking that directional view.

Nick:
Wonderful.

Thank you so much for joining us today, Gargi.

We hope to see you back in the region soon.

Gargi:
Absolutely. Next time, get more than one answer right.