EMEA Investment Forum 2023 - Milan | Marketing in Partnership | 11 October 2023 | Palazzo Giureconsulti , Piazza dei Mercanti, 2, 20123 Milano MI, Italy

This year’s Forum focused on providing investors with ways to navigate current macroeconomic challenges. The near-term direction of rates and growth remains uncertain, financial market sentiment is improving while inflation remains persistent across developed markets, particularly in Europe, and labor markets are tight. Elevated volatility in the US and European banking sectors in March added to an already unpredictable environment and the extent of credit tightening and economic spillover effects remains unknown. The acute phase of banking stress may be behind us, and uncertainty regarding the US debt limit has been removed, but panelists agreed that market participants must stay alert. Investors at the Forum highlighted the emergence of another market cycle: a geopolitical risk super-cycle. Speakers acknowledged today’s geopolitical environment is an increasingly complex, yet critical, externality to navigate. Destabilization is underway, bilateral and multilateral relationships are changing, and the potential rise of conflict is shaking up trade patterns and reordering alliances. This will likely provoke more dispersion across asset classes, sectors and regions but may also lead to greater economic resilience in some countries. Ultimately, geopolitics matters more than ever, and investors and corporates should prepare as best they can for a wide range of possibilities, including outcomes from 2024’s mega election cycle spanning India, Mexico, South Africa, Ukraine, UK, US, Russia and Taiwan.