FNArena’s Weekly Insights – July 07 2025
In today’s Weekly Insights:
-The Megatrend You Simply Cannot Ignore
-FNArena Talks
-Ask FNArena
By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck, Editor
The Megatrend You Simply Cannot Ignore
Two and a halve years have passed since financial markets, and the world at large, woke up to a new technological break-through labeled Generative Artificial Intelligence.
By now, it seems initial investor euphoria has been replaced with general skepsis about true importance and impact duration of the new technology promise, as also shown in share prices dipping lower and not necessarily revisiting the levels that featured at the start of 2025.
Look no further than HMC Capital’s DigiCo Infrastructure REIT ((DGT)) spin-off which made its ASX debut on 13 December last year on a minor discount to the $5 per share IPO pricing, but whose share price is nowadays trading closer to $3 for a concrete example of how sentiment has turned for what seemed the no-brainer momentum trend to jump on over the past two years.
For good measure, not all those share prices locally and internationally have left a gap over the past six months, but many have. And from where I am sitting and observing, it seems many investors would rather buy into Aurizon Holdings ((AZJ)), Iluka Resources ((ILU)), Lendlease ((LLC)) or Monash IVF ((MVF)), and wait for better times to arrive for such market laggards, than grab the opportunity in less ebulliant share prices from obvious AI beneficiaries.
Ironically, today’s wait-and-see approach in Australia contravenes the rush by astute investors globally, including private equity and large pension funds, to grab their slice of what is promised to deliver the next economic and societal in-depth transformation.
So why isn’t there a lot more local enthusiasm for owning shares in Goodman Group ((GMG)) and other AI beneficiaries on the ASX?
Reasons To Be Skeptical
It’s not as if the promise of a different world tomorrow hasn’t arrived previously on Australian shores, and on most occasions the initial hype has quickly turned to dust or the true winners are mostly listed overseas. Think 3D printing and legalised cannabis as examples of the former and smartphones and social media platforms for the latter.
