Stanley Laman Group Answers: What Are Emerging Market Regions?

• Stanley Laman Group has established SLG International Opportunities, LP, to pursue investments in stocks that are not currently traded in developed markets, such as those in emerging market regions.

• Emerging market regions are those countries or areas of the world that are beginning to move towards market-oriented economies, generally assessed by their agricultural, food, and rural business sectors.

• In addition, they must have a local market exchange, their debt and equity markets need to have some liquidity, and there must be some form of regulatory body providing oversight.

• In some cases, they are also judged by their potential as markets for international commodities.

• In general, emerging market regions possess a financial infrastructure sufficient to allow trading, including banks, a single currency, and a stock exchange.

• They will often have lower standards of regulation and accounting than more established markets, as well as less market efficiency.

• Investors seek out emerging markets for their faster levels of economic growth, which allows for high returns on investment.

• However, there are risks. Emerging market regions tend to have less stability;

• limited equity opportunities, currency volatility, and political instability are other important considerations.

• Also, there tends to be limited access for individuals to their financial exchanges, as well as potential problems with differing languages, legal standards, and accounting practices, prompting the need for groups such as SLG International.