Ms. Pruksa Iamthongthong, Head of Equities – Asia Pacific at Aberdeen Asset Management (Thailand), stated that emerging markets (EM) began 2026 with accelerating profit growth momentum, further supported by the return of the global investment cycle into emerging markets. This encompasses investments in infrastructure, AI, new-era industrial production, and supply chain restructuring.
All these factors are channeling capital and profits into industries that are key strengths of the emerging markets, such as hardware, industrial manufacturing of natural resources, and technology for energy transition. It is expected to support earnings per share (EPS) growth up to 18%.
At the same time, emerging markets outperformed expectations in 2025, as the MSCI EM Index delivered returns higher than developed markets for the first time since 2020, rising by 34% in US dollar terms (USD).
Most analysts expect the EPS of MSCI EM to grow by approximately 18% this year, which is higher compared to the S&P 500’s 14.8% and MSCI World’s 12%. This reinforces confidence in the profit outlook for emerging markets this year. Meanwhile, the valuation remains attractive.
The forward P/E of emerging markets stands at approximately 15 times, compared to 26 times for the S&P 500 and 24 times for the MSCI World. This valuation gap reflects stronger growth opportunities at a time when developed markets face high stock prices and concentration risks in a handful of large companies. Thus, emerging markets currently present better opportunities for value creation in terms of risk-adjusted returns.
The recommended fund is the abrdn Global Emerging Growth Fund (ABGEM), which captures the global growth trend in emerging markets and offers investment opportunities in high-quality companies through investments in the master fund, abrdn SICAV I – Emerging Markets Equity Fund (Master Fund).
The fund’s selection process focuses on identifying companies in high-potential industries, with sustainable competitive business models, experienced management teams with proven track records, robust financial positions, and good earnings growth. It also places importance on opportunities and manages ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) risks to build long-term growth.
