Skip to content

Meet the Team

TEMIT is managed by an experienced investment team comprising of the following members:

Chetan Sehgal, CFA

Senior Managing Director, Director of Portfolio Management

Andrew Ness

Portfolio Manager, Franklin Templeton Emerging Markets Equity

Overview

Emerging Market (EM) stocks rose in May 2026, helped by two main drivers. Hopes for a US–Iran peace deal lifted sentiment. At the same time, the artificial intelligence (AI) theme spread beyond the leading technology firms. For the month, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index returned 10.57%. The MSCI World Index delivered 5.40%, both in net UK-sterling terms.1

The emerging Asia region advanced in May, led by North Asia. Taiwan and South Korea benefited from continued enthusiasm for AI infrastructure. Demand for advanced semiconductors, high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and AI server supply-chain components supported earnings expectations. Broader risk appetite improved late in the month on hopes for a US-Iran peace deal, which eased oil prices. However, performance was not uniform.

Chinese stocks faced pressure after regulators tightened enforcement on cross-border trading through offshore brokers. This weighed on parts of the market, particularly online brokers and selected ADRs (American Depositary Receipts). However, chip stocks rose on signs of domestic progress in the sector. This could help narrow the gap with global leaders. Indian stocks rose slightly on better sentiment from US–Iran talks. Indonesian stocks fell after MSCI removed six firms from its index.

Equities in the emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa region posted small gains. Hopes for a halt in fighting supported sentiment, especially in oil importers like Poland, South Africa and Hungary. Turkey diverged negatively after a court ruling against the opposition leadership weighted on local equities.

Equities in the emerging Latin America (LatAm) region ended lower.  Brazil led regional losses. Falling oil prices weighed on its state-backed oil company Petrobras. This reversed part of the earlier commodity-led rally. Expectations of higher interest rates for longer and lingering political and fiscal uncertainty ahead of elections also weighed on sentiment. Mexico was more resilient after its central bank cut interest rates, following easing inflation pressures in April.

Portfolio Changes & Positioning

During the period, we took the opportunity to increase our holdings in Chinese electric vehicle (EV) and battery manufacturer BYD as its share price fell. Beyond this short-term weakness, we remain optimistic on its vertically integrated EV business model, which has significant scope to gain share in the overseas market. It is also a leading supplier of energy storage systems batteries, which is seeing strong growth in both China and overseas. We therefore took advantage of this share price weakness to strengthen our exposure.

Overall, we increased investments in the industrials, financials and consumer discretionary sectors. In terms of countries, we undertook purchases in China/Hong Kong, India and Brazil.

In line with our investment approach, we trimmed our position in South Korean semiconductor company SK Hynix on the back of a share price advancement. SK Hynix remains a key portfolio holding as it retains a leadership position in the high bandwidth memory market.

By sector, we reduced our exposure to information technology and utilities. Geographically, we made the biggest sales in South Korea, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates.

Positive Contributors

TEMIT’s net asset value returned 17.97% over the month, compared to the MSCI EM Index-NR’s result of 10.57%, both in UK-sterling terms.

The AI theme drove the top contributors this month. SK Hynix’s shares rose strongly, supported by robust demand for HBM used in AI infrastructure. MediaTek, a Taiwan-based semiconductor company, also gained. Investors focused on its longer-term AI chip opportunities. South Korean holding company LG Corp was another contributor.

Detractors

Leading global investment company Prosus led detractors. Prosus is the largest shareholder of Tencent Holdings, a Chinese technology company also held in the portfolio. Prosus also owns food delivery businesses. Prosus’ shares declined mainly because Tencent’s share price fell during the month. Sentiment was also affected by Prosus management’s indication that it would accelerate investment in food delivery company iFood. This is expected to reduce near-term earnings. Concerns around the integration and turnaround of Just Eat Takeaway.com, acquired in 2025, also weighed on the shares. Other detractors included BYD and Petrobras.

Newsletter Subscription

Subscribe to receive emails containing portfolio manager commentary, factsheets, market insights and other relevant information straight to your inbox.

Outlook

We remain constructive on EM equities, but our approach is selective. Long-term growth drivers remain intact, supported by AI, digitalisation, energy demand and industrial upgrading. At the same time, we are not complacent about risks from slower global growth, higher rates, policy shifts and geopolitical tensions.

North Asia remains central to the opportunity set. Taiwan and South Korea play critical roles in semiconductor and hardware supply chains. They benefit from demand for advanced logic chips, memory and broader AI infrastructure. We also see opportunities beyond the largest technology names. These include EM companies supplying power equipment, cooling systems and other components. These are used in data centres and AI systems.

China remains important in EVs and batteries. Selectivity is needed, given competition and weaker domestic demand in some areas. LatAm remains supported by attractive valuations, strong commodity prices and the region’s rate cut cycle.

Key risks include a delay in hyperscaler spending, higher interest rates, rising energy prices and geopolitical escalation. These could weigh on earnings, tighten financial conditions and reduce risk appetite, particularly in more vulnerable EM economies.

Overall, EM valuations remain attractive and earnings quality has improved. We believe structural growth themes can support long-term returns, but wide dispersion across markets means we continue to focus on companies with strong balance sheets, durable earnings and valuation discipline.