Global hedge funds have significantly increased their investments across Asia, with weekly purchases of stocks from South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan reaching their highest levels in a decade last week, according to a client report from Morgan Stanley. The bank's prime brokerage team noted in a report issued on Friday that the majority of this equity buying occurred outside the United States, with the Asia-Pacific region driving most of the trading activity. The bank stated that hedge fund inflows into South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan came from clients across all regions and strategies. This surge made the week ending May 7 the largest for total purchases in over ten years, although specific figures were not provided. Global investors are flocking to Asian technology firms in search of beneficiaries within the artificial intelligence sector. South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan have become pivotal regions for semiconductor and hardware investments. Notably, Asia's three largest companies by market capitalization are all chipmakers—Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM.US), Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix. Their recent record earnings have highlighted their crucial roles in the global AI supply chain. Hussein Sacoor, a partner at New York-based hedge fund Tekne Capital, commented, "We are still in the early stages of the global tech cycle. Asia remains under-owned, undervalued, and increasingly central." He added that approximately 90% of the technology supply chain, in terms of cost and bill of materials, is concentrated in Asia, while the majority of capital remains focused in the U.S. market. Last week, major benchmark stock indices in South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan all reached new highs. Morgan Stanley indicated that last week's buy orders were concentrated in the semiconductor and hardware sectors. The bank further noted that hedge funds' net exposure to Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan has risen to its highest point since the prime brokerage team began tracking the data in 2010, now accounting for roughly 19% of global positioning. In a related development, Goldman Sachs highlighted in a separate report that following a significant sell-off in Asian equities during March, hedge fund monthly buying inflows into Asian stocks in April reached their highest level in a decade.