Geopolitics - the Bedrock of the New Investment Order

Join our Lowy Institute experts and senior investment leaders as they discuss key geopolitical risks and trends, and the impacts on financial markets and investment portfolios.

Rising geopolitical tensions are testing the resilience of global businesses and challenging existing growth strategies.  Conflict in Europe and the Middle East and escalating US–China competition have the attention of business leaders. Moreover, 2024 is the year of national elections, with more than 60 countries and nearly 50 percent of the global population heading to the polls. Business leaders increasingly see geopolitics as a major risk to global growth and view political transitions as the leading emergent risk.

Our panellists will consider major paradigm shifts including inflation regimes, climate and decarbonisation, technology disruption, populism, deglobalisation and changing asset class correlations. They will also discuss the consequences of these shifts for Australia, Asia and the world.

Sam Roggeveen will convene this conversation with Lowy Institute Research Director Hervé Lemahieu, Barrenjoey Chief Economist Jo Masters and Future Fund Chief Investment Officer Ben Samild, which will include questions from the audience.

Jo Masters is Chief Economist of Barrenjoey Capital Partners. She focuses on trends across the economy and financial markets and has been a highly regarded part of the economic debate in Australia for 25 years.

Hervé Lemahieu is Director of Research at the Lowy Institute. His research interests include strategy and geopolitics, global governance, Australian foreign policy, Southeast Asia and data analysis.  He started his career at Oxford Analytica informing government and business policy on geopolitical risk in Asia.

Ben Samild is Chief Investment Officer at the Future Fund, having previously served as Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Portfolio Construction. As CIO, Mr Samild leads the Future Fund’s Investment Team investing over $289 billion across all asset classes and geographies, with a particular focus on stewarding the Fund’s joined-up whole-of-portfolio approach.

Sam Roggeveen is Director the International Security Program at the Lowy Institute. He is the author of The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and Peace.  Sam also serves as Lead Editor at the Lowy Institute, and editor of the Lowy Institute Papers.

*Tickets include refreshments*