“We have further reduced our exposure to US equities recently, mainly due to valuations, although it is still quite a chunky part of our portfolios,” Simon Skinner head of the global investment team at Orbis, said at the event attended by this news service. “Parts of the US economy are booming and some are not. We have exposure on the other side of the AI boat.”

The firm is not invested in the big, core industries like Nvidia, Google, Meta and Amazon. “US exceptionalism of the last decade has become dependent on a handful of mega-cap stocks. Just seven companies currently account for more than a quarter of the US S&P 500 Index,” Skinner continued. He sees opportunities in healthcare, an area of neglected opportunity. “US Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Insmed are advancing cutting-edge therapies. UnitedHealth Group and Elevance dominate US managed care, with scale and data advantages that are hard to replicate,” he said. “Steris leads in sterilisation and infection prevention – an essential, recurring service. US manufacturer Bruker provides precision instruments that underpin both academic and industrial research.”

As part of Orbis' Six Courageous Questions for 2026, the firm, which uses a contrarian approach to buying good firms that are out of favour, discussed the report at the event. It highlighted overlooked areas, where expectations and valuations are low, able to offer the best potential for long-term returns. That means looking at neglected areas, such as emerging markets, healthcare, and companies rebuilding the critical infrastructure powering modern life.

“We see opportunities on the UK market, and have increased our exposure to Brazil and Korea recently, being undervalued markets,” Matthew Spencer, head of UK retail at Orbis Investments, said. “We have been favourable on the UK market for some time and are invested in Rolls Royce as well as London-listed contractor and geotechnical specialist Keller, finding opportunities in home builders. We also picked up Irish paper-based packaging firm Smurfit Westrock recently. We are invested in South Korean chip maker SK Hynix and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC)."

The firm said the promise of artificial intelligence is real, but so is the risk of overpaying. Selective positions in firms such as TSMC, Nebius, and South Korea-based Samsung enable them to capture the structural benefits of AI adoption without the speculative multiples that often accompany bubbles.

“We have exposure to Japan and we are invested in Japan’s Mitsubishi Real Estate,” Spencer added. The firm owns some gold which acts as an inflation hedge. 

Currency
Nick Purser, head of currency, drew attention to the US dollar’s role as a “shock absorber” during times of market stress is showing cracks. “The “Liberation Day” sell-off was a timely reminder that even American exceptionalism has limits, and the dollar’s defensive reputation can no longer be taken for granted,” he said. Purser believes that investors could benefit from building a balanced basket of alternative currencies to reduce dollar dependence. “In our view, the Japanese yen, Norwegian krone, and Australian dollar all offer compelling characteristics ranging from fiscal strength and external surpluses to deep undervaluation,” he added.

"At a time when macroeconomic and geopolitical risks feel as unpredictable as ever, diversification matters.” Skinner said. True diversification isn’t about owning a little bit of everything – it’s about uncovering hidden value where others are not looking. In the end, successful investing isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about asking the important questions.

A number of wealth managers have also recently come out in favour of emerging markets and Asia this year, for instance Aberdeen Investments, Paris-based Amundi, Carmignac and Indosuez, as well as GIB Asset Management and Franklin Templeton. See more here and here. See more about Orbis Investments here and here.