Catenaa, Saturday, October 03, 2026- The upcoming US corporate earnings season is likely to show that AI investments are driving growth in the financial, materials, and power sectors.
Standard Chartered said the upcoming Q3 earnings season is likely to show growth in financials, materials, power, and the electrification sector, driven by AI investments, as well as in technology and communications services.
It said that large-cap companies in the US have absorbed the rise in bond yields relatively well, supported by expectations of robust earnings growth led by AI-related investment.
“We continue to favour quality companies and sectors benefiting from this AI cycle,” Standard Chartered said in its weekly market review.
Moreover, it said that semiconductors and memory chips remain preferred exposures as structural AI demand should extend the memory upcycle, while long-term supply agreements provide better revenue visibility.
Standard Chartered said that recent industry commentary points to tighter memory supply-demand conditions through 2028, reinforcing the bank’s view that AI demand is likely to extend the memory upcycle.
The bank said that the market has seen a surge of new model releases, despite debates around “Pacing the Frontier, along with the introduction of new consumer AI agents that are capable of comparing online prices and making purchases.
“These are early days, but the path is open for a business-to-agent (B2A) economy where businesses increasingly interact with AI assistants acting on customers’ behalf,” Standard Chartered said.
The bank also said wider adoption of these applications should support demand for memory chips, and its share of global semiconductor revenues is projected to rise from 30.7% in 2025 to 66.7% in 2027.
Standard Chartered said that they maintain their opportunistic view on global semiconductors, and given memory chips’ cyclical nature, investors should diversify their exposures across big tech and semiconductors.
