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US companies are overly blaming China in profit warnings to ease expectations, Invesco suggests

Invesco lists China as a top global opportunity, cites panic selling as a reason
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Invesco lists China as a top global opportunity, cites panic selling as a reason

It's a region of the world that's a source of jitters, but Invesco sees opportunity.

The firm's chief global market strategist, Kristina Hooper, lists China as a top investment play despite earnings warnings from U.S. multinational companies. They've been citing the trade war with the U.S. as a major headwind to profits.

Goodyear warned on Tuesday. Apple cautioned investors on Jan. 2 with its unprecedented iPhone sales warning. Four weeks ago, FedEx shares plunged 10 percent, citing the U.S.-China trade war as a factor in its disappointing forecast.

"There's a lot of fear around China," Hooper said Tuesday on CNBC's "Futures Now." "We've certainly seen that rush that could be characterized as a panic, and I do think that presents some opportunity."

With earnings season starting this week, she believes more companies will emphasize the trade war impact in earnings warnings.

"Companies have also, I think, overly blamed China," Hooper said.

According to Hooper, China is also in a position to effectively weather the U.S. imposed tariffs.

"I actually think China is going to put a lot of stimulus into its economy this year," she said. "We won't have to worry so much about what's going on in terms of economic growth in China."

China, the world's largest manufacturer and goods exporter, is expected to overtake the U.S. as the biggest economy on the planet by next year. As for its trade war with the U.S., Hooper sees a good chance it will end this quarter.

"What we're hearing is that the president [Donald Trump] is actually eager to make a deal," she said. "It could be a deal on specifically China making some small concessions around buying some more U.S. products, and we could call it a day. That looks more and more like a possibility."

For now, Hooper believes it makes sense for investors to target smaller cap companies because they have less exposure abroad. However, she also wouldn't avoid multinationals.

"I wouldn't walk away from U.S. companies that do have exposure to China," Hooper said. "Some of them have already been hit. Prices have come down recently for a number of those names so that could represent an opportunity."

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