Goldman Sachs Boosts Asian Market Targets Driven by AI Demand

Goldman Sachs' equity strategy team, led by Timothy Moe, has increased the 12-month target for the MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index to 1,080 from 990. This adjustment implies a potential upside of approximately 17.2% compared to levels seen in early June.

The bank has also upgraded Taiwan's equity rating to overweight and raised the KOSPI target for South Korea from 9,000 to 12,000, suggesting a 36.3% upside. These moves are driven by strong demand for AI hardware in North Asia, specifically high-bandwidth memory from manufacturers like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, and advanced chips from Taiwan.

Regarding broader market forecasts, Goldman Sachs raised its 2026 EPS growth forecast for the MSCI Emerging Markets Index from 45% to 55%. The bank expects the surge in demand for memory chips to continue through 2028 and beyond.

The growth is highly concentrated. As of early June, the MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index rose 27% year-to-date, but excluding South Korea and Taiwan, the rest of the region declined by 4%.