Pakistan
2014 Return: 17.4%
The stock market in Pakistan has been a top performer in recent years as investors venture into so-called "frontier markets."
As they look beyond traditional emerging markets, investors have been increasingly willing to take risks in countries like Pakistan, which have a history of political instability.
Pakistani stocks were hit hard during the financial crisis, which came on the heels of the assassination of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007.
But the political climate has been improving since 2012, and investors have been drawn back into Pakistan by attractive valuations, according to Colin Bell, a director at Auerbach Grayson.
"This is a country with pretty decent companies, despite economic and political issues," he said.
The South Asian nation had its first peaceful transfer of power from one civilian government to another in its entire history last year.
Pakistani stocks have also been supported since the government announced in 2012 that it would no longer investigate the source of investment flows into the stock market, said Bell. That move essentially created a "washing machine" for undocumented money, he added.
