JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are launching an index of the 25 most liquid credit-default swaps in Asia. The firms launched a similar index in Australia last week and have been rolling out other regional so-called TRAC-X indices since April. "This will allow end-users and the dealer community to easily trade and hedge Asia as a macro-sector," said Robert Breden, executive director and Japan and non-Japan Asia head of investment grade trading and structuring in Tokyo.
"Liquidity is the priority for success," said Amy Li, v.p. in Asia index and portfolio research at JPMorgan in Hong Kong. Richard Cohen, Asia-Pacific credit derivatives trader at Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong, said the index will contain wide, diversified exposure to the region, including both corporates and sovereign credits.