AI demand from the US is boosting Asian currencies. South Korea, Taiwan, and Malaysia outperform others.
South Korea's exports rose roughly 70% in August.
The trend may continue as AI spending grows.
What happened
New Goldman Sachs analysis finds that currencies of South Korea, Taiwan, and Malaysia are outperforming those of countries less exposed to US AI spending, as chip exporters convert US dollars back into local currencies.
Why it matters
The strength has partially shielded these economies from inflation pressures hitting other Asian countries, which were worsened by the Iran war choking off fuel imports. Asia's refined fuel imports hit a new low in August.
What to watch
South Korea's August exports rose roughly 70% year-over-year on a surge in memory demand, according to new trade data released Tuesday. This suggests AI-related demand continues to support the region's trade performance.
Ask the AI about this article →
Goldman Sachs' analysis highlights how US AI spending is reshaping currency markets far from Silicon Valley. South Korea, Taiwan, and Malaysia export key components for AI systems, and as these manufacturers convert their dollar earnings back into local currencies, their exchange rates strengthen. This gives them a buffer against inflation pressures that other Asian countries face, especially those exacerbated by the Iran war's impact on fuel imports.
The data point about Asia's refined fuel imports hitting a new low in August underscores the region's broader economic strain. Yet the AI-driven export boom, as seen in South Korea's near-70% export growth, suggests a divergence between economies tied to the AI supply chain and those that are not. This dynamic could continue as long as US AI demand remains strong, potentially widening the gap between AI-exporting and non-exporting Asian economies.
For example, today's edition would include:
AI-summarized, only the topics you pick — one digest a day via Email, Slack, or Discord.
Free · takes 30 seconds · unsubscribe anytimeWhat is AIToday? →
Ask AI anything about this article. Q&As are published on this page for other readers too.
CrowdStrike extends its Falcon platform to police AI agents at the endpoint, treating each agent as an asset w…
PlayNitride Inc., a Micro LED maker, expects its technology to enter commercial optical communications applica…
McKinsey's 2025 survey found that while 65% of companies continuously use generative AI, fewer than 5% have ac…
Anthropic announced Enterprise Frontier Safeguards (EFS) on September 1, offering enterprise customers privacy…
Anthropic announced Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Mythos 5.1 on September 1
Anthropic's latest model, Claude Fable 5.1, is now available on Snowflake Cortex AI
