Liberatore highlighted the Wildlife Conservation Bond, which helps protect black rhinos in South African parks.
While helping the animals survive, he said that these apex predators also manage to improve the land they live on thus improving the quality of these parks so they can be used for tourism and provide employment for local populations.
Other opportunities across Nuveen’s investment platform include higher quality and longer duration offerings in the municipal space, according to John Miller, head of Municipal at Nuveen. The length of the duration refers to either the curve or the coupons that local and state municipalities issue. Miller said that growing fears of a recession will help feed the need for these types of investment vehicles.
Emerging markets have been an area that has had its own levels of trials and tribulations, according to Anupam Damani, head of International and Emerging Markets Debt at Nuveen.
“The economy is going through so many shocks,” she said. “When that happens, it makes sense to take stock.”
To do that she looked at three different emerging market attributes: where they came from, how far they have come, and how much further they can expect to go.
Damani said that at the start of the year, many central banks were not putting a lot of investment toward emerging markets, although she pointed out that regions have been ahead of other markets when it comes to the tightening schedule in response to the troubled economy. In terms of the progress these markets can hope to make, there have been positives.
“The risk-reward looks better now than it did at the beginning of the year,” she said.
Looking ahead there are a number of uncertainties within the global economy. There is still concern that a recession could hit. Persson speculated that if a recession does hit, it will be a minor one. The Federal Reserve is another matter, as it recently increased interest rates by 75 basis points.
Nuveen is expecting a similar bump at the Fed’s next meeting and bracing for increases beyond that of 50, 25, and 25 later this year and into early 2023, although monetary policy is never set in stone.