From an investor's perspective, one of the major attractions of certain emerging markets is rapid population growth combined with rapid, sustained domestic economic growth. That combination historically translates into tremendous consumer demand for all kinds of products and services. Two relevant examples are the countries with the highest populations in the world: China and India.
In fact, the total population of the emerging economies comprises 80% of the population of the world. And many of these densely populated nations have taken steps to further open up their economies to global trade and investment, removing barriers to international ownership in various industries and modernizing stock market structure to make trading more liquid and transparent.
Further, many large U.S. companies are expanding their business operations into emerging markets. This type of international investment can further accelerate the development and growth of the domestic economies, as experienced companies bring money and modernized business practices to emerging markets.
Value investments
Along with opportunities for growth, mutual funds also look in emerging markets for value investments, since low trading volumes,
fewer investors, and less efficient trading systems may result in more investments being undervalued by the market.
Jeffrey Rosensweig, Goizueta Business School, Emory University
Jeffrey Rosensweig, Goizueta Business School, Emory University 
