HONG KONG, Dec 12 (IFR) - Sentiment in Asian credit markets was steady even with the end of the year drawing closer, as credit default swap spreads continued to tighten amid ongoing appetite for risk returns next year.

The iTraxx Asia ex-Japan investment-grade index was spotted at 70bp/71bp, inside a 52-week low hit on September 19, according to Thomson Reuters data.

South Korean corporations and banks were the best performers on the CDS index, with Woori Bank's 5-year CDS 4bp tighter, while CDS spreads of Samsung Electronics, Posco and KT Corp 2bp-3bp narrower. Bank of India widened 3bp.

"We expect income-starved and safety-seeking investors to keep chasing relatively scarce G3 bonds − holding rates well below historical averages," said a BlackRock Investment Institute report on next year's global investment outlook.

Alibaba's 2023s were trading slightly below par at a cash price of 99.97, while the Chinese tech giant's longer end of the curve across the recent 2037s and 2057s continued to hold on to gains after pricing and were spotted at 102.4 and 103.2 respectively, according Reuters data.

Recent perps from China Minmetals and Franshion Brilliant struggled to recover since being issued last month and were trading at cash prices of 98.5 and 99.10, respectively.

The secondary performance sets a less satisfactory backdrop for CIFI Holdings (Group), which is marketing a senior unsecured perp today.

The latest Chinese high-yield property names were also trading below par. China South City's 7.25% 2022s and Logan Property's 5.125% November 2018s were trading at 97.568 and 99.75, respectively, according to Reuters data.

(Reporting by Frances Yoon; Editing by Dharsan Singh)