Rising interest rates, slowing economic growth, political uncertainty and a stronger US dollar – any one of these factors could spell trouble for the small, volatile markets of southeast Asia. But in 2014, the region looks set for the perfect storm of all four.

The contrast to a year ago is stark. Back then the three “TIPs” markets – Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines – were riding high as investors snapped up stocks in these consumer-driven economies. Unlike the export-heavy countries further north, southeast Asia was seen as a relative haven in times of moribund global growth.

That euphoria hit a brick wall in May with the first mention by Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve chairman, of the possible scaling back, or tapering, of its asset purchases this year. On May 21, the day before Mr Bernanke spoke, the Philippine stock index closed at a record high, while Thailand hit a 20-year pinnacle. Indonesia had reached an all-time high a day earlier.