SINGAPORE: Singappre sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings has revealed plans to invest up to US$30 billion in the United States over the next five years, with a focus on healthcare, financial services, and technology.
Jane Atherton, Temasek’s head of North America, explained the rationale behind this move in an interview with Reuters. “It’s an incredibly deep and broad capital market in the US. The US is really at the forefront of everything that’s happening from the AI perspective,” she said.
This move comes as the US economy continues to outperform global peers. The S&P 500 has risen 14.5% this year, partly due to advances in artificial intelligence. This contrasts with weaker economic growth in China, which recently cut interest rates to stimulate its economy.
China has been a major area of investment for Temasek. However, the latest financial year marked a change, with the Americas, including the US, becoming the largest investment region for the firm for the first time in ten years. Currently, about 22% of Temasek’s investments, or US$63 billion, are in the Americas, compared to 19% in China.
Temasek is particularly interested in US sectors related to artificial intelligence, including data centres, semiconductors, and battery storage.
Ms Atherton noted that “Geopolitics always plays a part,” adding that China has lagged behind both the global market and the US in recent years.
Temasek manages a US$288 billion portfolio, with a focus on long-term investments in digitisation and sustainability.
She also mentioned that the future performance of US stocks, particularly in the tech sector, will depend on earnings. “You’ve seen some multiple expansion, but that’s been driven by higher growth, and in theory, it’ll pay for it,” she explained.
Temasek is also exploring both public and private market investments as more private equity firms look to sell assets. /TISG
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