Asia Markets 2025: AI Winners and Better Mousetraps

Artificial intelligence dominated market headlines in 2025 — and for Asia, that has largely been a tailwind.

The countries most exposed to surging demand for chips, networking infrastructure and the broader AI supply chain delivered standout returns. Taiwan’s TAIEX Index rose 17% year-to-date, while China and Korea gained 39% and 54% respectively.¹

That momentum flowed through to several key holdings within the Platinum Asia Fund. Taiwanese semiconductor leader TSMC climbed 36% over the past year, while Korean memory chip manufacturer SK hynix surged more than 90%. Samsung also rebounded strongly, returning 50% as confidence improved around its chip capabilities and positioning in the AI ecosystem.²

AI winners extended beyond hardware.

Chinese consumer platforms Alibaba and Kuaishou also benefited from the accelerating adoption of AI technologies. Alibaba’s cloud division continues to grow rapidly, supported by its own large language model (LLM) ambitions and in-house chip development targeting Nvidia’s dominance within China. Meanwhile, Kuaishou has gained traction through the success of its “Kling” AI text-to-video model and the increasing use of AI to improve recommendations and drive e-commerce sales.

Beyond the Headlines: Tariffs, Trade and Trump

While AI captured investor attention, geopolitical headlines also shaped sentiment throughout the year.

President Trump’s evolving tariff agenda created uncertainty across global markets, yet the impact on Asia has so far been more muted than many feared. In some areas, US trade policies have actually created opportunities. Korean industrial companies, for example, are benefiting from the ongoing “friend-shoring” and re-shoring of US manufacturing capacity.

As always in Asia, company-specific drivers often matter more than macro headlines.

Indonesian conglomerate Astra International performed well as a strategic review raised the prospect of unlocking shareholder value. Following a recent research trip to Korea, we also initiated a position in LG Display, where improving discipline around capital expenditure and capacity expansion is supporting a stronger outlook.

Looking Ahead to 2026

AI increasingly looks like a transformative, long-duration technology trend — though parts of the sector are beginning to price in overly optimistic expectations.

Looking into 2026, a weaker US dollar could provide an additional boost for Asian markets. Structural demand for batteries powering electric vehicles and energy grids should also continue to support holdings such as Chinese battery leader CATL.

Importantly, our focus remains on identifying businesses that benefit not only from macroeconomic tailwinds, but from operational excellence — companies that simply build a “better mousetrap” by improving processes, lowering costs and delivering products customers genuinely value.