Financial market players look forward to international events at which global leaders come together to discuss ways to improve economic and political cooperation. This is especially true in today’s day and age, when trade and commerce have taken a global approach, and international trade is seen as the norm rather than as a divergence.

There are a number of key takeaways when global leaders get together to discuss potential areas for increased cooperation. For example, central bankers may seek to improve monetary policy mechanisms by drawing on other nations’ experiences. Financial institutions and businesses may look for growth opportunities that could come from a closer association of nations. And investors assess what was said and identify potential areas where they could divert their funds.

Investor impact

Global equity investors, such as those invested in the SPDR MSCI World Quality Mix ETF (QWLD) or the Vanguard FTSE All World Ex US ETF (VEU), are particularly interested in such events. So are investors in European equities via the Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF (VGK), and investors in India with stakes in the WisdomTree India Earnings Fund (EPI). Investors with interests in Japan, through the iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ), also watch these meetings closely.

The recent International Symposium of the Banque de France is one example of a global event worth watching. Market Realist covered key takeaways from this symposium in a recently published series.

In this series, we’ll look for takeaways from the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (or APEC) meeting that took place November 10–12 in Beijing, China.