Which ASEAN equity laggards could soon become leaders?
While AI-fuelled equity gains in North Asia have hogged the spotlight this year, select ASEAN markets have quietly staged a breakout of their own.
While AI-driven equity gains in North Asia have dominated recent headlines, several ASEAN markets have quietly outperformed their larger counterparts this year. Thailand's SET Index and Singapore's Straits Times Index have surged 26% and 22% respectively, while Indonesia's Jakarta Composite has plummeted 26%. The divergence is surprising, given the similar performance catalysts across electronics, energy, and industrials.
Despite macroeconomic drivers seeming incongruent with market performance, investors must look beyond generalizations to identify potential breakout markets. Singapore's equity boom stems primarily from financials, electronics, and industrial gains, bolstered by defense spending and AI capital expenditure. Thailand benefits from AI-driven production shifts, policy stability, and a safe-haven status.
Malaysia, the region's fifth-largest economy, is benefiting from cloud and data-center investments, projected to contribute to its top-four AI hardware exporter status. Indonesia, meanwhile, boasts the strongest forecast for corporate earnings growth and return on equity, driven by mining, EVs, and battery supply chains. However, fiscal deficit concerns, interest rate hikes, and political uncertainty could pose challenges for these markets.
Written by urgent.news from The Jakarta Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
