Emerging markets still in the driving seat

Remember the popular view earlier this year? That the emerging market party was over and 2014 would be all about the recovery in the West? The reality has been somewhat different, with recovery in the West disappointingly sluggish.

This year we expect the US economy to grow by only 2.2 percent - no more than the average since 2009. The eurozone has stagnated after growing by just 0.2 percent in the first three months of the year. And while 2014 is likely to be a better year for the global economy than 2013, once again the emerging markets are driving growth.

Transition has been a main theme for 2014, and this still holds true for both China and the United States. China is rebalancing its economy, and the US is normalizing its monetary policy, ending its quantitative easing (QE) program.