The optimal allocation point amid market turbulence! JPMorgan: 'Asia trades' are about to rise

Capital is flowing out of the U.S., while trading activity across Asia-Pacific is surging and M&A enthusiasm is heating up. On May 29, according to media reports, Paul Uren, Head of JPMorgan’s Asia-Pacific Investment Banking, told reporters in Hong Kong during an interview that although he and his team have maintained a cautious outlook on Asia-Pacific dealmaking this year, Asia is benefiting from capital outflows from the United States—and M&A activity across the Asia-Pacific region has been exceptionally robust this year. Data shows that total M&A transaction value in the Asia-Pacific region rose 32% year-on-year. Uren revealed that JPMorgan is seizing this opportunity by aggressively hiring talent across the Asia-Pacific region and actively engaging clients on multiple fronts—including M&A transactions. Periods of market instability, he noted, are often the golden window for acquiring other companies: those bold enough to pursue acquisitions amid turbulence frequently reap the greatest rewards. Asia-Pacific M&A activity surges year-on-year; Japan emerges as a hotspot Speaking in Hong Kong, Uren said the entire team is swamped—engaging intensively with clients on topics ranging from using M&A to diversify businesses or supply chains, to divesting non-core assets, raising capital, and refinancing debt. Uren pointed out that Asia is benefiting from the global reallocation of capital away from the U.S. This trend is prompting JPMorgan to expand its hiring across the Asia-Pacific region—especially in Japan, where a wave of large-scale transactions is expected.

A comprehensive, hands-on guide to industrial capital operations amid global supply chain restructuring

Pave the way with money, bind people with equity, build networks with funds—don’t fear spending. The idle cash sitting in your bank account won’t survive even one supply-chain disruption. Take stock of your hand. Where are your core customers? Where do your critical raw materials come from? Calculate your resilience formula. Don’t just sit in the office staring at PowerPoint slides. Book a flight first thing tomorrow morning—and head to the border to take a look. Travel to neighboring countries. Sit down for tea with a local entrepreneur. Don’t limit conversations to buying and selling—explore joint ventures. Counterintuitive? Yes—instead of paying cash for goods, you pay cash for equity. Nervous? That’s perfectly normal. Yet in business, the sturdiest ships are often held together by the most expensive nails. By 2026, this window will close—and it won’t stay open long. Will you stay put and wait for extinction—or leap forward and fight? Get moving. Turn cross-border business into neighborhood trade. How can industrial capital shift from ‘passively taking hits’ to ‘proactively striking’? The core logic has changed—and investment logic must change accordingly. 1. From ‘evaluating individual projects’ to ‘mapping entire supply chains’ In the past, evaluating a project meant assessing its technology, team, and market potential. Today, you must add one more criterion: Is this project positioned securely within the global supply chain? How to implement this? Draw a ‘Supply Chain Security Map’: For every link in the chain, annotate three dimensions: dependency (e.g., import share), substitutability (are alternatives available?), and controllability (is the technology domestically owned?) Formula: Capital Security Coefficient = Dependency × Substitution Difficulty × Controllability The higher the dependency, the greater the substitution difficulty, and the lower the controllability—the lower the security coefficient—and thus the higher the priority for capital deployment. 2. From ‘sprinkling capital’ to ‘weaving ecosystems’ Traditional industry funds operate like ‘pepper shakers’—dispersing small amounts everywhere, achieving little impact anywhere. Today, industrial capital must ‘weave ecosystems’: around critical supply chains, interconnect upstream and downstream players, adjacent industries, technology chains, funding chains, and talent pipelines. Concrete tactics: (1) M&A to fill gaps Overseas M&A isn’t about acquiring assets—it’s about acquiring ‘security nodes.’ Example: Acquiring a lithium battery critical-mineral company isn’t about profiting from mining—it’s about ensuring your supply chain never runs out of feedstock. Data explains why: In 2024, China’s import dependency for lithium raw materials stood at ~60%. If you delay action now, you’ll face another version of ‘chokepoint’ vulnerability. (2) Chain-based investing Target ‘chain-leading’ enterprises—and make precise investments across their upstream and downstream partners. Example: Invest in a leading new-energy vehicle manufacturer, while simultaneously backing its battery supplier, chip supplier, and component suppliers—building an integrated ‘investment portfolio,’ not isolated projects. (3) Regional repositioning As supply chains restructure, capital must relocate too. Vietnam, India, Mexico, and Central & Eastern Europe are emerging as new global supply-chain nodes. Industrial capital can no longer focus solely on domestic markets—it must ‘go global alongside enterprises.’ 3. From ‘providing capital’ to ‘delivering empowerment’ Post-investment support isn’t ‘invest-and-exit.’ It means helping portfolio companies accomplish three things: • Secure orders: Help them land new customers—especially overseas ones. • Access technology: Introduce overseas R&D resources. • Attract talent: Recruit international talent. In short: Capital isn’t just ‘money’—it’s a ‘resource connector.’ Customers first, capacity second. Don’t rush to spend before customers move—but act instantly once they do. Roots remain at home; leaves grow abroad. A dual-base structure—domestic roots plus overseas branches—is far more stable than betting everything on one location.

JPMorgan sees India outbound M&A rising as firms move to secure supply chains

13 hours ago

JPMorgan projects rising Indian outbound M&A to secure supply chains, exemplified by Sun Pharma's $11.75 billion Organon deal. Total M&A hit $100 billion in H1 2026, driven by needs for critical minerals and energy.

reuters

2026-09-21

JPMorgan sees India outbound M&A rising as firms move to secure supply chains

JPMorgan sees India outbound M&A rising as firms move to secure supply chains

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