Defining Emerging Market ?

Can anyone define an emerging market?.

There are numerous definitions and little consensus on the meaning of “emerging markets” which mean different things to different people.  The proliferation of terms is increasingly bewildering for those managers who are attempting to prioritize their resources and maximise returns.

In this blog I look at some of the many definitions that have contributed to the confusion.  I also offer some practical advice for navigating through the hogwash that has kept so many analysts and academics gainfully employed for such a long period of time.

One definition I like, even if rather wordy, is by the economist Vladimir Kvint who defines an emerging market as “a society transitioning from a dictatorship to a free market-oriented economy, with increasing economic freedom, gradual integration within the global marketplace, an expanding middle class, improving standards of living and social stability and tolerance, as well as…