Japanese equities offer bigger potential returns because of a supportive central bank, Stephen Parker of JPMorgan Private Bank said Thursday.

"The best trade that you've had equity market where the central bank has been the most aggressive," he said on CNBC's "Halftime Report." "For a while, that was the Fed. Europe didn't start performing better until the ECB stepped up. And today, without question, that title goes to the Bank of Japan."

Parker, who is head of U.S. multiasset strategies, said Japan remained "a really interesting market" despite its underperformance at the start of the year.

The BOJ's accommodative monetary policies have shown signs of being effective, he said, noting a weakening yen, expectations of rising inflation and "impressive results out of earnings and economic growth."

Weighing in on the broader market, Parker said he had begun the year with "a constructive view on equities" that considered any weakness an opportunity to buy.

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"We think consumer confidence is improving, despite some of the recent economic data," he said. "We think the trend is getting better. More importantly, global growth is improving."

Parker pointed out an area to avoid, however.

"I think emerging markets certainly have the potential to bring a risk-on sentiment to the market. It's what we saw in January. That is where the most headline risk is to us," he said.

"It's the reason we've been staying away from places like commodities directly," Parke said. "In fact, we've been moving away from some of the emerging market equity markets in general and seeing more opportunities in developed markets, where we think the quality and pattern of growth is improving."

—By CNBC's Bruno J. Navarro. Follow him on Twitter @Bruno_J_Navarro.