As workers struggle with the uneven fruits of globalisation and automation, investors are backing the next wave of transformative technology, Credit Suisse's APAC private bank chief investment officer John Woods says.
Global trade has stalled in recent months, despite strong export numbers out of Asia, and those figures are leading into a discussion about "peak globalisation", Mr Woods said.
Mr Woods said the question of whether globalisation has become the development model of yesteryear, and whether the focus will now move more to driving domestic consumption, is "the big discussion at the moment".
And questioning the future of globalisation makes "some kind of intuitive sense" in the current environment of rising global protectionism.
A wave of populism has gripped the US and Europe in particular, where recent elections have illustrated a wave of support for anti-immigration and anti-free trade agreements.
"I don't think that people really appreciated that they could express their discontent at the ballot box until reasonably recently," Mr Woods said. "In a certain way, it's the last opportunity to express dissatisfaction because when you are largely becoming irrelevant rather than exploited; the only recourse you have is to an election."
He said he believes developments in technology have taken people by surprise, and even now the full extent of how technology is set to transform the world is under-appreciated.
"I don't think that people appreciate how quickly population growth is decelerating and how quickly automation is eroding jobs."
The number of expected job losses around the Asean region, in retail, in auto, is "extraordinary", according to Mr Woods.
"The overlay to all this is a tech story," said Mr Woods, who advises the private bank's ultra-high net worth Asian clients.
"We've got a lot of interest in robotic funds, artificial intelligence funds and baskets of companies associated with that sort of thing. The funds we follow are based in Europe, but could just as well be in the US."
He said that in Asia, although there was a lot of manufacturing and [intellectual property] in the region, there wasn't necessarily the right investment exposure. Australian equities don't have the right level of exposure to IT either, he said.
"The depth and choice is in Europe and the US. Asia-based clients particularly from Hong Kong, Singapore and China are all interested in exploring this space. They are all putting money in it. "
Ageing is also a very powerful investment theme for the future, he said, naming sectors such as healthcare, life assurance, pension funds, asset management and construction as likely to benefit in this environment.
"I think urban consumption is a really powerful theme as well," he said, noting that there has been a mass migration around the world from rural to urban areas.
"It's very difficult to consume in a village. It's much easier to consume in a city, where the multiplier is so much more powerful."
With this kind of movement, it places a lot of pressure on existing, creaking infrastructure, he said. "So you tend to see urban infrastructure representing a really powerful theme as well."
That was especially true in areas that had been overlooked, such as hospitals and utilities, he said.
"One could say that America, for example, hasn't invested decently in urban infrastructure for 100 years - since the New Deal. It might have to do a new New Deal to upgrade," Mr Woods added.
He believes that over the next five to 10 years there will be a marked increase in the range of infrastructure investment opportunities available.
"I think there will be a whole bunch of private equity funds queuing out the door saying 'I've got a reasonably mature road project or airport project'," he said.
"It's going to be very substantial. At the moment, there's a slight lack of opportunity - it will come."
