Use a multi-pronged approach. The umbrella term "emerging markets" encompasses a highly diverse set of countries in varying stages of development. "Not all emerging markets are created equal," says Oliver Pursche, president of New York-based Gary Goldberg Financial Services. "There's a sizable difference in terms of risk expectations when investing in Brazil compared to Russia, or investing in India compared to the Middle East/North Africa region. They all kind of get lumped together as 'emerging markets' but there are sizable differences." While investing broadly is one way to capture a piece of the action in emerging markets, parsing out your investments among particular countries and sectors is another way to capitalize on growth in developing nations. As he does with his fund, GMG Defensive Beta (MPDAX), Pursche recommends using a combination of investments – including developing and developed market stocks, currencies and commodities – to hedge risk and attain diverse emerging markets exposure.
Pursche owns iShares MSCI Brazil Index (EWZ) and iPath MSCI India Index (INP), but has passed on direct country exposure to other well-performing emerging markets countries such as China. "The criterion is we need a politically stable area that encourages business and private industry and doesn't have a state-run type of business atmosphere," Pursche says. "That's the biggest reason we don't own China, for example. As much as they're growing at spectacular rates, we want to get the exposure to China in a different way."
[See How to Invest in Rising Oil Prices.]
When investing in specific country funds, Pursche advises investors to check out the financial regulatory system of the country first. "When you take country exposure, you're accepting the full risk of those markets and the geopolitical environment of that country," he says. That's the primary reason Pursche says he shies away from investing directly in China and the North African and Middle Eastern emerging markets. The political instability (think Egypt) and the still-developing financial institutions in those regions make other investment avenues more attractive.
Pursche also recommends supplementing specific emerging market country investments with exposure to U.S. multinational corporations. Like McDevitt, Pursche says many large domestic companies do a substantial portion of their business in emerging markets countries, giving investors that second layer of exposure to emerging markets countries and their expected growth.
Keep commodities in mind. Finally, Pursche says investors should pay attention to commodities. If the inflation threat worsens, basics like food, raw materials and energy will be among a handful of sectors where profits continue to climb. "We own the very commodities that we think are going to appreciate and cause that inflation," he says. "Wheat, corn, sugar, and some of the energy sources in particular, coal and oil." With burgeoning demand from developed and developing nations or everything from coal to corn to palm oil, natural resource-rich countries such as Brazil, Russia, and Malaysia would benefit from spikes in commodity prices, as would investors with stakes in the items those countries produce.
While the variety of commodity investing options is growing, Pursche says the choices for long-term investors still aren't great. Many ETFs use complicated derivative methods or are designed for active day traders, but Pursche says investors can get a slice of commodity exposure with a broad-based fund such as PIMCO Commodity Real Return.
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