"Investors are still investing in companies with 50 per cent or more of their income from developed markets. Not only does this dilute the investment, but investors may also pay a premium for developed companies’ operations in the rest of the world," he explained.
According to Financial Express data, the FTSE 100 has returned 25.56 per cent in the last five years. The MSCI Emerging Market index has returned more than 106 per cent over the same time period.
Performance of sector vs index over 5-yrs
Source: Financial Express Analytics
Conway also pointed out that the MSCI EM outshone the performance of the FTSE Developed Multinational index, which includes multinationals that derive 30 per cent or more of revenues from outside their home economic region.
"The MSCI EM outshines the group of indirect investors, with returns of 264 per cent versus 32 per cent over a 10-year period," he continued.
Conway dismissed the argument that investing directly in emerging markets yields a higher risk.
"While by their nature, emerging economies are undergoing structural change which can lead to increased market volatility, we believe emerging economies today represent something of a safe haven," he said.
Conway cited: low sovereign, corporate and household debt levels; high savings rates; large current account balances; and huge foreign currency reserves as contributing to the low risk involved with emerging markets.
"This is in contrast to the debt-laden developed world," he finished.