India and Japan are bright spots in Asia's 'supremely interesting' equity and M&A markets, JPMorgan says

India and Japan are two bright spots in Asia's "supremely interesting" markets, JPMorgan's Filippo Gori said at the bank's Global China Summit on Thursday, referring to the region's equity as well as deal-making landscape.

"You have Japan, which is on fire. India, which is very in high demand," Gori, co-head of global banking at JPMorgan, told CNBC.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock index as well as India's Nifty 50 have climbed nearly 26% over the past year, according to LSEG data.

While mergers and acquisitions activity declined globally in 2023, Japan's deal value rose 23% from a year ago to about $123 billion, Bain & Company said in its Japan M&A report. "Japan's economy is uniquely well positioned for growth in M&A," the report said.

Sentiment on the Indian market was bullish, with most dealmakers expecting improvement in 2024, Bain & Company analysts said.

Last year M&A deal value in India stood at $136 billion, a 27% drop for a year earlier, which was in line with the global decline in M&A activity, according to Deloitte's India M&A trends report. "Continued business and investor confidence in India could pave the way for a recovery in deal values in the country," the report said.

Countries such as India and Japan have also been benefiting from the "China Plus One" strategy, as investors look elsewhere in the region to park their money amid escalating U.S.-China tensions.

Companies seeking to expand their manufacturing footprint in India will drive M&A activity in the country: "This can be attributed to the China Plus One reconfiguration of global supply chains and favourable government policies, such as the Production Linked Incentive scheme that promotes manufacturing in India," Deloitte said.

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