Growing labor market participation, a pickup in consumer demand and economic growth are among the reasons why emerging markets have been in the spotlight this year. Emerging markets on the MSCI list include Brazil, China, Greece, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Qatar and Thailand. One fund manager, however, is looking outside that list, at an "up and coming emerging market and the next dragon in Asia" — Vietnam.
A 'big theme' Mafli is betting on "high growth sectors" and stocks "doing well in underperforming sectors." One theme she watching is consumption, given the surge in Vietnam's middle- to higher-income population, she said. "This is the big theme I play in Vietnam because it will benefit so many sectors like retail and continue to drive Vietnam's growth in the next 5/10 years," Mafli added.