Best performer of the next decade? Here's what advisers think

Over the last decade, advisers and their clients have seen it all - recessions, rallies, record-setting intra-day swings (both ways) and, at times, unprecedented correlations across asset classes. It's no wonder that clients are still somewhat squeamish about equities, even with markets firmly in bull territory as of late. But we know that advisers are long-term thinkers - and are also charged with forcing their clients to take long-term views, despite some staggering short-term developments at times. So we recently conducted a quick poll and asked advisers point blank: "What is your strongest conviction for the top-performing asset class over the next ten years?" The results were revealing. Emerging markets ranked as the clear #1, with more than 27% of the advisers polled by InvestmentNews indicating that they believe these investments will out-perform all others over the next decade. Those advisers that provided color for their response noted that the rise of the middle class and increase demand from evolved markets should fuel considerable growth in emerging markets. Right behind emerging markets? U.S. equities. More than 21% of the advisers polled believe domestic equities will produce the strongest performance over the next decade, followed by real estate - which took 15% of the vote from advisers. Every other asset class registered a single-digit response rate from the group, with international equities, gold and emerging market debt ranking fourth, fifth and sixth in the poll. --M.B.