HSBC Private Bank and Premier Wealth Chief Investment Officer for North Asia Patrick Ho said the recent downturn in Asian semiconductor stocks reflects investors re-evaluating high earnings expectations, not a decline in the artificial intelligence (AI) investment cycle. The bank noted a shift in semiconductor and memory stocks rather than a complete surrender, with South Korean equities seeing increased volatility as domestic retail investors purchased and foreign investors reduced exposure, while regulators toughened leverage rules. HSBC maintains that the long-term AI investment case remains solid, predicting global AI capital expenditure will rise from under USD 400 billion in 2025 to over USD 1 trillion by 2028. Asia is expected to become the nucleus of global data centre expansion, with regional capacity more than doubling by 2030 and making up approximately 40 percent of worldwide capacity, benefiting semiconductor manufacturers, equipment suppliers, server producers, cooling technology providers, power generation firms, energy storage companies, and commodity suppliers. HSBC also highlighted China’s AI landscape, positing its large language model ecosystem could represent a market valued at over USD 150 billion by 2030, with developers closing performance gaps at lower costs and shifting from subsidised services to commercial models like Model-as-a-Service. The bank also sees opportunities in China’s advanced manufacturing, including electric vehicles, autonomous driving, energy storage, and biotechnology.