Schroders Global Fixed Income Investment Director in Hong Kong, Wu Meian, pointed out that in the first half of 2024, the global composite bond index rose by 0.13%, with performance staying flat. The performance of the global bond market is still influenced by when central banks will shift their monetary policies. For example, in the fourth quarter of last year, the market expected the Federal Reserve to enter a rate-cutting cycle in the first half of 2024 as inflation and labor market growth slowed. However, as of July 2024, the expected rate cuts in the United States only exist in the market's expectations and have not been implemented. In contrast, due to slowing economic growth and effective cooling of inflation in Europe, the European Central Bank cut rates as scheduled for the first time since 2019, reducing rates by 25 basis points in June before the United States ended its monetary tightening policy. From a monetary policy perspective, due to differences in the rate-cutting schedules of major central banks, Schroders Global has always encouraged bond investors to adopt a global diversified investment strategy, which will continue in 2024. From a macro perspective, the overall consumer price index (CPI) in the United States cooled down in June and fell to its lowest level since 2021, increasing the possibility of an economic "soft landing". However, the non-farm employment market indicators in the United States remained strong in June, and it is expected that the path for the Federal Reserve's expected inflation decrease to the target level will be slow and not without challenges. Nevertheless, investors do not need to worry too much as Schroders Global's investment judgment on the probability of the U.S. economy achieving a "soft landing" has further decreased. A "soft landing" refers to a scenario where economic growth slows down and inflation pressures ease, typically leaning towards dovish statements from the Federal Reserve, which would be favorable for interest rate cuts. In this scenario, it would benefit high-quality corporate bonds, government bonds, and asset-backed securities. Although the market continues to delay expectations for the U.S. rate-cutting schedule into the second half of the year, events such as the French and British elections in June and July have led to a significant decrease in U.S. Treasury yields due to political uncertainties. This reflects that apart from macroeconomic data, European and British elections, as well as the upcoming U.S. congressional and presidential elections, are expected to become the market's focus. Schroders Global expects that in the second half of 2024, the financial and fixed income markets will focus on the U.S. presidential elections. Particularly, given the recent events surrounding Trump and Biden's decisions, it is still too early to judge who will win. With months to go until the November election, there are many uncertainties, and investors should take a relatively cautious investment approach. However, based on past experiences, if events such as significant interest rate fluctuations cause turmoil in the market, there may be more investment opportunities to capture after the event. Since the yield curve is currently inverted, Schroders Global prefers short-term (1 to 5 years) euro-denominated investment-grade corporate bonds, as they can provide similar returns to the overall market but with lower interest rate risk sensitivity compared to long-term bonds. In a high interest rate environment this year, caution should be taken in selecting European and American companies capable of overcoming high operating costs, focusing on their financial quality rather than blindly pursuing higher returns. Apart from corporate bonds, investment opportunities in U.S. agency mortgage-backed securities have also emerged. MBS packages mortgage loans on buildings and sells them to investors in bond or security form, typically of high credit quality and low default risk for institutional issuers. Over the past year, the Federal Reserve has continued to reduce purchases of MBS, causing credit spreads on MBS guaranteed by U.S. institutions to be higher than similar credit-quality American corporate bonds, making them attractive and likely to perform well in the medium to long term. In terms of the Asian bond market, performance has been lackluster in recent years due to the downward trend of Chinese dollar-denominated real estate bonds. However, this year has seen better performance due to higher yields and significantly reduced default risks. Schroders Global relatively prefers industry sectors such as finance and banking in Asia, which benefit from a high interest rate environment and enhanced profitability. They also actively explore high credit quality corporate bonds from Australia and Japan. Schroders Global expects that the second half of 2024 will enter a more accommodative interest rate environment, favorable for global bond market investors. However, the U.S. presidential election remains a focal point for the market, which could increase market volatility. Investors should diversify globally, focus on credit quality, and maintain resilience to interest rate risks in a prudent manner to participate in global bond market opportunities.