UAE Investors' $270.8 Billion US Stock Stake Tilts Toward AI Chip and Cloud Suppliers

The report gave two versions of the figure. One passage dated the holdings to the end of August, with annual growth of nearly 14%. Another, citing Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial, put the same $270.8 billion at the end of July, up about 16%. Valecha said his numbers drew on US Treasury International Capital data published through the FRED database, on Global SWF and on Oracle's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Retail investors have moved quickly. Valecha said the number of UAE investors holding Oracle rose 86%. SanDisk holders rose 56%, Broadcom 22% and Micron 20%. Several software companies saw shareholder numbers fall steeply. Nvidia remains the most widely held stock among users of one large UAE trading platform, he said, without naming the platform.

Oracle illustrates both the appeal and the cost. Valecha said its accumulated order commitments reached $664 billion in the quarter ended August, after more than $30 billion of new AI cloud contracts. Heavy data-centre spending also left it with negative free cash flow of $23.7 billion in the year ended May.

Abu Dhabi's state investors are leaning the same way. Valecha said the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority targets 32% to 42% of its portfolio in developed-market equities and 45% to 60% in North America. ADIA's latest annual review said it would keep pursuing AI-linked opportunities, citing heavy spending on data centres, power transmission and chipmaking capacity. The review also warned that index returns depend on a narrow group of large companies. Abu Dhabi's MGX invested privately and helped complete the $40 billion acquisition of US data-centre operator Aligned Data Centers, Valecha said.

Hamza Dweik, head of trading for the Middle East and North Africa at Saxo Bank, said Nvidia, Amazon, Microsoft and Oracle recur in a sample of Saxo client holdings. ASML and TSMC also feature. He said sharia-screened products are another clear trend, giving exposure to the S&P 500, US and global equities and emerging markets.

An eToro survey of 1,000 UAE retail investors in August found a split view, said market analyst Nagham Hassan. Of those polled, 58% expected the Middle East to deliver the best long-term returns, ahead of the US. But 65% picked the US to lead the AI race, and 35% chose China. eToro's third-quarter data show investors favouring companies that supply AI technology and infrastructure over those whose businesses AI could disrupt, she said.

Valecha expects UAE investors to keep favouring chip, memory and cloud suppliers. Returns, he said, will depend on whether those companies turn their capital spending into sustained profits.