Thoughts from the Road – Asia: Beating to a Different Drum

By Henry H. McVey Oct 19, 2022

Of the many changes associated with COVID, one of the most impactful for me personally was the loss of routine and ritual, including being able to travel and spend time with others outside of my day-to-day life in New York City. Many of you who have read my insights over the years know that I’ve been going to Asia fairly regularly since 1995. My first trip to the region, which took place the summer before I enrolled in business school, involved some traveler’s checks, a back pack, and four budget airline connections to get there from Richmond, Virginia. I also had no cell phone – only a determination to learn more about Asia, China in particular. Importantly, though, that trip made me realize early on in my career how that emerging region would likely reshape the global economy. It also inspired a strong desire – which I was able to enact until the onset of COVID – to return as frequently as possible to deepen my knowledge of all that Asia has to offer both economically and culturally.

So a few weeks ago, for the first time since the beginning of COVID, I was able to return to Asia. Specifically, I traveled to Singapore and Tokyo, spending time with members of my Asia ‘local’ team who focus on macro and portfolio construction – Frances Lim, Changchun Hua, Deepali Bhargava and Hemant Pandey – as well as…