2 March 2026
Paul Kalogirou, Head of Client Portfolio Management, Asia & Global Multi-Asset Solutions

Recent geopolitical tensions involving Iran have renewed focus on oil prices and their potential economic and market effects. Paul Kalogirou, Head of Client Portfolio Management, Asia & Global Multi-Asset Solutions, shares latest views on it.
Global Multi Asset Diversified Income Fund (GMADI) update amid recent Middle East developments
Global markets turned to a risk off mode in March 2026 as rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East eclipsed earlier optimism about growth and policy support. Equity and fixed-income markets declined as energy price shocks and uncertainty weighed on investor confidence. However, the diversified portfolio construction and income generation focus supported the Manulife Global Fund – Global Multi Asset Diversified Income Fund (“GMADI” or “the Fund”) in delivering relatively resilient performance ( 4%) .
Key takeaways from Chinese mainland NPC meeting
The annual meeting of Chinese mainland’s National People’s Congress (NPC) is concluding this week. The China equity team shares its latest views on key policy developments and analyses the main growth engines supporting high quality growth.
Latest asset allocation views amid latest Middle East developments
Against a backdrop of elevated uncertainty, the Multi Asset Strategy Team (MAST) summarizes key market moves, and the potential cross-asset implications.
Global Equity Diversified Income (GEDI) strategy update: Risks and opportunities
In early April, developments in the Middle East showed signs of stabilisation, prompting a partial recovery and renewed risk-taking in equity markets. However, beyond ongoing geopolitical risks, other factors—including potential private credit contagion across banks and broader financials—continue to pose downside risks. Despite these uncertainties, we believe an income centric approach, combined with global diversification across growth, value and income equities, has provided both downside resilience and upside participation for the Global Equities Diversified Income (GEDI) strategy.
Global tech and semiconductors: what’s been driving returns and what to watch next
Semiconductors have been one of the strongest parts of global equity markets so far in 2026, with performance supported by a powerful mix of demand and improving fundamentals. The headlines have focused on artificial intelligence (AI), but the opportunity set is broader than a single theme or a handful of companies. As AI infrastructure expands, it is driving investment not only in high-performance computing chips, but also in the networking and power technologies that keep modern data centres running. At the same time, parts of the industry outside AI are showing early signs of stabilisation and recovery.
Global Multi Asset Diversified Income Fund (GMADI) update amid recent Middle East developments
Global markets turned to a risk off mode in March 2026 as rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East eclipsed earlier optimism about growth and policy support. Equity and fixed-income markets declined as energy price shocks and uncertainty weighed on investor confidence. However, the diversified portfolio construction and income generation focus supported the Manulife Global Fund – Global Multi Asset Diversified Income Fund (“GMADI” or “the Fund”) in delivering relatively resilient performance ( 4%) .