Frontier - Exploring The Top Ten Emerging Markets Of Tomorrow

With advanced economies shackled by debt and recession, investors are turning to emerging markets for better returns. Yet the money managers who earned the most in countries like China, India, Russia and Brazil are more interested in places yet to `emerge.' In Frontier, we go on the road with eight of the most successful fund managers for an unparalleled guide to assessing growth potential in places better known for conflict, corruption and poverty. A practical manual for investors, Frontier is also a must-read for executives seeking to attract global capital and finance professionals and students to better understand the changing dynamics of international investment.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The New World Order (~2,000 words)

‧ Sets out rationale for focus on frontier markets as the global debt crisis redefines the investing universe

‧ Introduces diversity of frontier markets and criteria for country/ stock/ bond selection

‧ Introduces the best performing fund managers

Chapters 1-8:

Eight chapters follow, each focused on one country. Six will be top picks on a five- to 10-year horizon from the most successful money managers. Two will be countries the experts are staying away from. The ``bad'' country chapters will be interspersed with the ``good.''

E.g. First chapter might be Franklin Templeton's Mark Mobius visiting Egypt:

Chapter 1 Pyramid Selling: When Mobius Met Morsi

Framework (~2,500 words, or first 25-30% of each chapter)

Each chapter will begin with an overview, introducing a country (in this example, Egypt), its strengths and risks, and a fund manager's (in this example, Mobius's) investment approach. While framed as a road trip for readability, the writing will be tight and focused on testing investment criteria. The reader won't know at the start whether the country is a good or bad pick (i.e. whether an investment is achieved.) Chapter title will evoke the drama of the journey.

The key focus will be on delivering fresh ideas based on big money manager assessments when meeting challenges/ hostilities/ adversity and observations after grilling top-level government officials and executives.

Interwoven is an initial grounding in the analysis to follow, along with the politics, economics and history of each country and the fund managers' methodology - what triggers them to invest millions or throws up a flare.

While focused around one fund manager, each chapter will take perspective from peers on the country/ stocks/ bonds and the performance and management style of their rival.

Analysis (~6,000 words, or 70-75% of each chapter, incl. Bloomberg charts/ illustrations)

Each chapter will then take a detailed look at the opportunity/ risk identified by the fund manager. While covering technical information, the analysis will be lively - provocative headers on real-world topics. The analysis will incorporate:

? Qualitative macro/ country criteria - political risk, rule of law, corruption, capital restrictions, tax, banking stability, market regulation, transparency, accessibility

? Macro data - expected GDP growth, trade balance, export agreements, indebtedness, Transparency International ranking, inclusion in fund manager indexes, liquidity

? Qualitative stock selection criteria - management credentials, corporate governance, accountability, relationships, goodwill

? Stock data - valuation metrics/ peer comparisons, earnings outlook, M&A potential, volatility, analyst coverage

? Corporate and government bond criteria - default risk, credit ratings, relative value (yield/ spread) analysis

? Triggers to watch for tha

GAVIN SERKIN is the Emerging Markets Editor-at-Large, working with reporters and editors worldwide. He joined Bloomberg in 2000 as Europe's investing reporter, before specializing in emerging markets in 2001. Serkin was previously the Editor of Portfolio International and the News Editor for a group of nine weekly newspapers in London and Southeast England.