a_emergingmarketseq.htm

Message from the Trustees

October 7, 2022

Dear Fellow Shareholder:

Financial markets are reminding us that the journey to long-term returns often involves weathering periods of heightened volatility. This year, stocks and bonds have experienced declines, and U.S. gross domestic product decreased slightly in the first and second quarters. Consumers and businesses have grappled with multidecade-high inflation. In response, the U.S. Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates to contain price pressures, and certain economic indicators have begun to show improvement.

While this challenging environment may test investors’ patience, you can be confident that Putnam portfolio managers are actively working for you. They are assessing risks while researching new and attractive investment opportunities for your fund.

We also would like to announce changes to the Board of Trustees. In July 2022, we welcomed Jennifer Williams Murphy and Marie Pillai as new Trustees. Both have a wealth of investment advisory and executive management experience. We also want to thank our Trustees who retired from the Board on June 30, 2022: Paul Joskow served with us since 1997, and Ravi Akhoury joined the Board in 2009. We wish them well.

Thank you for investing with Putnam.

Current performance may be lower or higher than the quoted past performance, which cannot guarantee future results. Share price, principal value, and return will fluctuate, and you may have a gain or a loss when you sell your shares. Performance of class A shares assumes reinvestment of distributions and does not account for taxes. Fund returns in the bar chart do not reflect a sales charge of 5.75%; had they, returns would have been lower. See below and pages 7–9 for additional performance information. For a portion of the periods, the fund had expense limitations, without which returns would have been lower. To obtain the most recent month-end performance, visit putnam.com.

Lipper peer group median is provided by Lipper, a Refinitiv company.

This comparison shows your fund’s performance in the context of broad market indexes for the 12 months ended 8/31/22. See above and pages 7–9 for additional fund performance information. Index descriptions can be found on pages 13–14.

All Bloomberg indices are provided by Bloomberg Index Services Limited.

2 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Brian, how was the investment environment for the reporting period?

EM stocks declined over the 12-month period, as did stocks across most global markets. Market volatility was driven by concerns about rising inflation, an uneven global economic recovery, spreading Covid-19 variants, and the Russia-Ukraine War. For emerging market investors, a strong U.S. dollar, higher interest rates, and the Federal Reserve’s plans to combat rising inflation created risks. Despite the challenges of this macroeconomic backdrop, we remain optimistic about the long-term potential in emerging market stocks.

How did the fund perform during the reporting period?

The fund’s class A shares returned –31.05%, and the fund’s benchmark, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index [ND], returned –21.80%.

What were some stocks that helped fund performance during the reporting period?

The top contributor to performance was Alinma Bank, the second-largest Islamic bank and sixth-largest bank by loan book in Saudi Arabia. Overall, it has 6% of the market share by

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total assets in Saudi Arabia. It benefits from two themes — rising oil prices and higher interest rates — that make it attractive to us. About 80% of the bank’s loan book is floating-rate corporate loans, and 66% of deposits are non-interest-bearing deposits in current account savings accounts. Alinma is undergoing a turnaround under a new management team that we believe has an excellent track record.

Another top contributor to performance was ICICI Bank, Ltd., one of the largest private banks in India. We believe ICICI offers strong long-term growth potential due to its loan book mix, liability franchise, and asset quality. ICICI Bank executed well during the pandemic, which we believe reflects the culture change at the bank under its new CEO. We believe ICICI has a long runway for growth, as India is underpenetrated in terms of credit and India’s GDP [gross domestic product] is expected to grow at 6% to 7% on a normalized basis. ICICI has a strong deposit franchise, and its cost of funds is one of the lowest in the industry. ICICI is also ahead in its digital capabilities, which over time should bring its costs down, in our view.

What were some holdings that detracted from performance during the period?

The top detractor was Sea, Ltd., a Singapore-based internet company with businesses in digital entertainment, e-commerce, and financial services. The company benefits from expanding digital activity in countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations [ASEAN]. Rising competition and the company’s lack of new mobile video games produced negative earnings revisions and dampened its valuation multiples. By the close of the period, Sea had been sold from the portfolio.

Also detracting from performance for the period was MercadoLibre, the largest e-commerce and payments system in Latin America. Despite strong financial performance, the stock struggled due to broader market concerns about growth stocks. We continue to believe MercadoLibre can increase top-line growth by at least 30% over the next five years and improve profits. Coupled with what are, in our view, more than reasonable valuations, we believe MercadoLibre is still an appealing long-term investment.

What is your outlook for emerging markets?

EM stocks outperformed U.S. stocks in the first half of the 2022 calendar year despite many macroeconomic challenges. And we see the potential for outperformance in the second half of 2022 and into 2023. One reason is that their valuations have become more attractive, in our view. After tumbling 35% over 15 months, EM stocks appear to have bottomed. Also, while the rest of the world is hiking interest rates, China’s central bank is easing its policy, and the government has implemented stimulus packages in key industries like autos and infrastructure. The inflation outlook could be a key driver of performance of stocks in the months ahead. Unlike the U.S., several emerging market countries are benefiting from rising commodity prices and are experiencing much lower inflation. In the current environment, we believe Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are two potential winners. Today, we are finding opportunities to own attractively valued high-quality businesses that, in our view, are effectively navigating macroeconomic headwinds and are positioned to double or triple — or more — in size over the next decade.

Thank you, Brian, for your time and insights on the fund.

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Your fund’s performance

This section shows your fund’s performance, price, and distribution information for periods ended August 31, 2022, the end of its most recent fiscal year. In accordance with regulatory requirements for mutual funds, we also include performance information as of the most recent calendar quarter-end and expense information taken from the fund’s current prospectus. Performance should always be considered in light of a fund’s investment strategy. Data represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. More recent returns may be less or more than those shown. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, and you may have a gain or a loss when you sell your shares. Performance information does not reflect any deduction for taxes a shareholder may owe on fund distributions or on the redemption of fund shares. For the most recent month-end performance, please visit the Individual Investors section at putnam.com or call Putnam at 1-800-225-1581. Class R, R6, and Y shares are not available to all investors. See the Terms and definitions section in this report for definitions of the share classes offered by your fund.

Annualized fund performance Total return for periods ended 8/31/22


	Life of fund	10 years	5 years	3 years	1 year
Class A (9/29/08)
Before sales charge	3.50%	4.10%	1.12%	3.44%	–31.05%
After sales charge	3.06	3.49	–0.07	1.41	–35.01
Class B (9/29/08)
Before CDSC	3.06	3.47	0.37	2.66	–31.57
After CDSC	3.06	3.47	0.01	1.70	–34.80
Class C (9/29/08)
Before CDSC	3.06	3.48	0.37	2.66	–31.55
After CDSC	3.06	3.48	0.37	2.66	–32.20
Class R (9/29/08)
Net asset value	3.24	3.83	0.87	3.17	–31.21
Class R6 (5/22/18)
Net asset value	3.82	4.43	1.53	3.87	–30.77
Class Y (9/29/08)
Net asset value	3.77	4.36	1.39	3.73	–30.84

Current performance may be lower or higher than the quoted past performance, which cannot guarantee future results. After-sales-charge returns for class A shares reflect the deduction of the maximum 5.75% sales charge levied at the time of purchase. Class B share returns after contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) reflect the applicable CDSC, which is 5% in the first year, declining over time to 1% in the sixth year, and is eliminated thereafter. Class C share returns after CDSC reflect a 1% CDSC for the first year that is eliminated thereafter. Class R, R6, and Y shares have no initial sales charge or CDSC. Performance for class R6 shares prior to their inception is derived from the historical performance of class Y shares and has not been adjusted for the lower investor servicing fees applicable to class R6 shares; had it, returns would have been higher.

For a portion of the periods, the fund had expense limitations, without which returns would have been lower.

The fund has had performance fee adjustments that may have had a positive or negative impact on returns.

Class B and C share performance reflects conversion to class A shares after eight years.

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Comparative annualized index returns For periods ended 8/31/22


	Life of fund	10 years	5 years	3 years	1 year
MSCI Emerging Markets
Index (ND)	4.28%	2.92%	0.59%	2.74%	–21.80%
Lipper Emerging Markets
Funds category median^*	4.29	2.58	–0.15	1.79	–25.70

Index and Lipper results should be compared with fund performance before sales charge, before CDSC, or at net asset value.

Lipper peer group median is provided by Lipper, a Refinitiv company.

^*Over the 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, 10-year, and life-of-fund periods ended 8/31/22, there were 766, 689, 605, 343, and 198 funds, respectively, in this Lipper category.

Past performance does not indicate future results. At the end of the same time period, a $10,000 investment in the fund’s class B and C shares would have been valued at $14,068 and $14,078, respectively, and no contingent deferred sales charges would apply. A $10,000 investment in the fund’s class R, R6, and Y shares would have been valued at $14,567, $15,428, and $15,323, respectively.

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Fund price and distribution information For the 12-month period ended 8/31/22


Distributions	Class A		Class B	Class C	Class R	Class R6	Class Y
Number	1		1	1	1	1	1
Income	$0.007328		$0.007328	$0.007328	$0.007328	$0.007328	$0.007328
Capital gains
Long-term gains	0.407479		0.407479	0.407479	0.407479	0.407479	0.407479
Short-term gains	0.402193		0.402193	0.402193	0.402193	0.402193	0.402193
Total	$0.817000		$0.817000	$0.817000	$0.817000	$0.817000	$0.817000
	Before	After	Net	Net	Net	Net	Net
	sales	sales	asset	asset	asset	asset	asset
Share value	charge	charge	value	value	value	value	value
8/31/21	$17.25	$18.30	$16.28	$16.19	$17.13	$17.53	$17.49
8/31/22	11.28	11.97	10.53	10.47	11.17	11.52	11.48

The classification of distributions, if any, is an estimate. Before-sales-charge share value and current dividend rate for class A shares, if applicable, do not take into account any sales charge levied at the time of purchase. After-sales-charge share value, current dividend rate, and current 30-day SEC yield, if applicable, are calculated assuming that the maximum sales charge (5.75% for class A shares) was levied at the time of purchase. Final distribution information will appear on your year-end tax forms.

Annualized fund performance as of most recent calendar quarter
Total return for periods ended 9/30/22


	Life of fund	10 years	5 years	3 years	1 year
Class A (9/29/08)
Before sales charge	2.67%	2.44%	–1.24%	–0.96%	–34.86%
After sales charge	2.23	1.83	–2.41	–2.89	–38.61
Class B (9/29/08)
Before CDSC	2.23	1.82	–1.98	–1.70	–35.37
After CDSC	2.23	1.82	–2.33	–2.62	–38.42
Class C (9/29/08)
Before CDSC	2.23	1.83	–1.98	–1.69	–35.31
After CDSC	2.23	1.83	–1.98	–1.69	–35.92
Class R (9/29/08)
Net asset value	2.41	2.18	–1.49	–1.19	–35.00
Class R6 (5/22/18)
Net asset value	2.99	2.77	–0.84	–0.55	–34.54
Class Y (9/29/08)
Net asset value	2.93	2.70	–0.99	–0.69	–34.63

See the discussion following the fund performance table on page 7 for information about the calculation of fund performance.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 9

Your fund’s expenses

As a mutual fund investor, you pay ongoing expenses, such as management fees, distribution fees (12b-1 fees), and other expenses. In the most recent six-month period, your fund’s expenses were limited; had expenses not been limited, they would have been higher. Using the following information, you can estimate how these expenses affect your investment and compare them with the expenses of other funds. You may also pay one-time transaction expenses, including sales charges (loads) and redemption fees, which are not shown in this section and would have resulted in higher total expenses. For more information, see your fund’s prospectus or talk to your financial representative.

Expense ratios


	Class A	Class B	Class C	Class R	Class R6	Class Y
Net expenses for the fiscal year
ended 8/31/21^*	1.34%	2.09%	2.09%	1.59%	0.94%	1.09%
Total annual operating expenses for the
fiscal year ended 8/31/21	1.61%	2.36%	2.36%	1.86%	1.21%	1.36%
Annualized expense ratio for the
six-month period ended 8/31/22^†‡	1.31%	2.06%	2.06%	1.56%	0.88%	1.06%

Fiscal year expense information in this table is taken from the most recent prospectus, is subject to change, and may differ from that shown for the annualized expense ratio and in the financial highlights of this report.

Prospectus expense information also includes the impact of acquired fund fees and expenses of 0.05%, which is not included in the financial highlights or annualized expense ratios. Expenses are shown as a percentage of average net assets.

^*Reflects Putnam Management’s contractual obligation to limit certain fund expenses through 12/30/22.

^†Expense ratios for each class are for the fund’s most recent fiscal half year. As a result of this, ratios may differ from expense ratios based on one-year data in the financial highlights.

^‡Includes an increase of 0.05% from annualizing the performance fee adjustment for the six months ended 8/31/22.

Expenses per $1,000

The following table shows the expenses you would have paid on a $1,000 investment in each class of the fund from 3/1/22 to 8/31/22. It also shows how much a $1,000 investment would be worth at the close of the period, assuming actual returns and expenses.


	Class A	Class B	Class C	Class R	Class R6	Class Y
Expenses paid per $1,000^*†	$5.97	$9.38	$9.37	$7.11	$4.01	$4.83
Ending value (after expenses)	$808.60	$805.70	$805.40	$807.70	$810.10	$809.60

^*Expenses for each share class are calculated using the fund’s annualized expense ratio for each class, which represents the ongoing expenses as a percentage of average net assets for the six months ended 8/31/22. The expense ratio may differ for each share class.

^†Expenses are calculated by multiplying the expense ratio by the average account value for the period; then multiplying the result by the number of days in the period (184); and then dividing that result by the number of days in the year (365).

10 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Estimate the expenses you paid

To estimate the ongoing expenses you paid for the six months ended 8/31/22, use the following calculation method. To find the value of your investment on 3/1/22, call Putnam at 1-800-225-1581.

Compare expenses using the SEC’s method

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has established guidelines to help investors assess fund expenses. Per these guidelines, the following table shows your fund’s expenses based on a $1,000 investment, assuming a hypothetical 5% annualized return. You can use this information to compare the ongoing expenses (but not transaction expenses or total costs) of investing in the fund with those of other funds. All mutual fund shareholder reports will provide this information to help you make this comparison. Please note that you cannot use this information to estimate your actual ending account balance and expenses paid during the period.


	Class A	Class B	Class C	Class R	Class R6	Class Y
Expenses paid per $1,000^*†	$6.67	$10.46	$10.46	$7.93	$4.48	$5.40
Ending value (after expenses)	$1,018.60	$1,014.82	$1,014.82	$1,017.34	$1,020.77	$1,019.86

^†Expenses are calculated by multiplying the expense ratio by the average account value for the six-month period; then multiplying the result by the number of days in the six-month period (184); and then dividing that result by the number of days in the year (365).

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 11

Consider these risks before investing

International investing involves currency, economic, and political risks. Emerging market securities carry illiquidity and volatility risks. Investments in small and/or midsize companies increase the risk of greater price fluctuations. From time to time, the fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in companies in one or more related industries or sectors, which would make the fund more vulnerable to adverse developments affecting those industries or sectors.

Growth stocks may be more susceptible to earnings disappointments, and value stocks may fail to rebound. Risks associated with derivatives include increased investment exposure (which may be considered leverage) and, in the case of over-the-counter instruments, the potential inability to terminate or sell derivatives positions and the potential failure of the other party to the instrument to meet its obligations. The value of investments in the fund’s portfolio may fall or fail to rise over extended periods of time for a variety of reasons, including general economic, political, or financial market conditions; investor sentiment and market perceptions; government actions; geopolitical events or changes; and factors related to a specific issuer, geography, industry, or sector. These and other factors may lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings.

Our investment techniques, analyses, and judgments may not produce the outcome we intend. The investments we select for the fund may not perform as well as other securities that we do not select for the fund. We, or the fund’s other service providers, may experience disruptions or operating errors that could have a negative effect on the fund. You can lose money by investing in the fund.

12 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Terms and definitions

Important terms

Total return shows how the value of the fund’s shares changed over time, assuming you held the shares through the entire period and reinvested all distributions in the fund.

Before sales charge, or net asset value, is the price, or value, of one share of a mutual fund, without a sales charge. Before-sales-charge figures fluctuate with market conditions. They are calculated by dividing the net assets of each class of shares by the number of outstanding shares in the class.

After sales charge is the price of a mutual fund share plus the maximum sales charge levied at the time of purchase. After-sales-charge performance figures shown here assume the 5.75% maximum sales charge for class A shares.

Contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) is generally a charge applied at the time of the redemption of class B or C shares and assumes redemption at the end of the period. Your fund’s class B CDSC declines over time from a 5% maximum during the first year to 1% during the sixth year. After the sixth year, the CDSC no longer applies. The CDSC for class C shares is 1% for one year after purchase.

Share classes

Class A shares are generally subject to an initial sales charge and no CDSC (except on certain redemptions of shares bought without an initial sales charge).

Class B shares are closed to new investments and are only available by exchange from class B shares of another Putnam fund or through dividend and/or capital gains reinvestment. They are not subject to an initial sales charge and may be subject to a CDSC.

Class C shares are not subject to an initial sales charge and are subject to a CDSC only if the shares are redeemed during the first year.

Class R shares are not subject to an initial sales charge or CDSC and are only available to employer-sponsored retirement plans.

Class R6 shares are not subject to an initial sales charge or CDSC and carry no 12b-1 fee. They are generally only available to employer-sponsored retirement plans, corporate and institutional clients, and clients in other approved programs.

Class Y shares are not subject to an initial sales charge or CDSC and carry no 12b-1 fee. They are generally only available to corporate and institutional clients and clients in other approved programs.

Comparative indexes

Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is an unmanaged index of U.S. investment-grade fixed income securities.

ICE BofA (Intercontinental Exchange Bank of America) U.S. 3-Month Treasury Bill Index is an unmanaged index that seeks to measure the performance of U.S. Treasury bills available in the marketplace.

MSCI Emerging Markets Index (ND) is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure equity market performance in the global emerging markets. Calculated with net dividends (ND), this total return index reflects the reinvestment of dividends after the deduction of withholding taxes, using a tax rate applicable to non-resident institutional investors who do not benefit from double taxation treaties.

S&P 500^® Index is an unmanaged index of common stock performance.

Indexes assume reinvestment of all distributions and do not account for fees. Securities and performance of a fund and an index will differ. You cannot invest directly in an index.

BLOOMBERG^® is a trademark and service mark of Bloomberg Finance L.P. and its affiliates (collectively

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 13

“Bloomberg”). Bloomberg or Bloomberg’s licensors own all proprietary rights in the Bloomberg Indices. Neither Bloomberg nor Bloomberg’s licensors approve or endorse this material, or guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information herein, or make any warranty, express or implied, as to the results to be obtained therefrom, and to the maximum extent allowed by law, neither shall have any liability or responsibility for injury or damages arising in connection therewith.

ICE Data Indices, LLC (“ICE BofA”), used with permission. ICE BofA permits use of the ICE BofA indices and related data on an “as is” basis; makes no warranties regarding same; does not guarantee the suitability, quality, accuracy, timeliness, and/or completeness of the ICE BofA indices or any data included in, related to, or derived therefrom; assumes no liability in connection with the use of the foregoing; and does not sponsor, endorse, or recommend Putnam Investments, or any of its products or services.

Lipper, a Refinitiv company, is a third-party industry-ranking entity that ranks mutual funds. Its rankings do not reflect sales charges. Lipper rankings are based on total return at net asset value relative to other funds that have similar current investment styles or objectives as determined by Lipper. Lipper may change a fund’s category assignment at its discretion. Lipper category medians reflect performance trends for funds within a category.

14 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Other information for shareholders

Proxy voting

Putnam is committed to managing our mutual funds in the best interests of our shareholders. The Putnam funds’ proxy voting guidelines and procedures, as well as information regarding how your fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the 12-month period ended June 30, 2022, are available in the Individual Investors section of putnam.com and on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) website, www.sec.gov. If you have questions about finding forms on the SEC’s website, you may call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. You may also obtain the Putnam funds’ proxy voting guidelines and procedures at no charge by calling Putnam’s Shareholder Services at 1-800-225-1581.

Fund portfolio holdings

The fund will file a complete schedule of its portfolio holdings with the SEC for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year on Form N-PORT within 60 days of the end of such fiscal quarter. Shareholders may obtain the fund’s Form N-PORT on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Prior to its use of Form N-PORT, the fund filed its complete schedule of its portfolio holdings with the SEC on Form N-Q, which is available online at www.sec.gov.

Trustee and employee fund ownership

Putnam employees and members of the Board of Trustees place their faith, confidence, and, most importantly, investment dollars in Putnam mutual funds. As of August 31, 2022, Putnam employees had approximately $463,000,000 and the Trustees had approximately $63,000,000 invested in Putnam mutual funds. These amounts include investments by the Trustees’ and employees’ immediate family members as well as investments through retirement and deferred compensation plans.

Liquidity risk management program

Putnam, as the administrator of the fund’s liquidity risk management program (appointed by the Board of Trustees), presented the most recent annual report on the program to the Trustees in April 2022. The report covered the structure of the program, including the program documents and related policies and procedures adopted to comply with Rule 22e-4 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and reviewed the operation of the program from January 2021 through December 2021. The report included a description of the annual liquidity assessment of the fund that Putnam performed in November 2021. The report noted that there were no material compliance exceptions identified under Rule 22e-4 during the period. The report included a review of the governance of the program and the methodology for classification of the fund’s investments. The report also included a discussion of liquidity monitoring during the period, including during the market liquidity challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the impact those challenges had on the liquidity of the fund’s investments. Putnam concluded that the program has been operating effectively and adequately to ensure compliance with Rule 22e-4.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 15

Important notice regarding Putnam’s privacy policy

In order to conduct business with our shareholders, we must obtain certain personal information such as account holders’ names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth. Using this information, we are able to maintain accurate records of accounts and transactions.

It is our policy to protect the confidentiality of our shareholder information, whether or not a shareholder currently owns shares of our funds. In particular, it is our policy not to sell information about you or your accounts to outside marketing firms. We have safeguards in place designed to prevent unauthorized access to our computer systems and procedures to protect personal information from unauthorized use.

Under certain circumstances, we must share account information with outside vendors who provide services to us, such as mailings and proxy solicitations. In these cases, the service providers enter into confidentiality agreements with us, and we provide only the information necessary to process transactions and perform other services related to your account. Finally, it is our policy to share account information with your financial representative, if you’ve listed one on your Putnam account.

16 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Trustee approval of management contract

General conclusions

The Board of Trustees of The Putnam Funds oversees the management of each fund and, as required by law, determines annually whether to approve the continuance of your fund’s management contract with Putnam Investment Management, LLC (“Putnam Management”), the sub-management contract with respect to your fund between Putnam Management and its affiliate, Putnam Investments Limited (“PIL”), and the sub-advisory contract among Putnam Management, PIL, and another affiliate, The Putnam Advisory Company (“PAC”). The Board, with the assistance of its Contract Committee, requests and evaluates all information it deems reasonably necessary under the circumstances in connection with its annual contract review. The Contract Committee consists solely of Trustees who are not “interested persons” (as this term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)) of The Putnam Funds (“Independent Trustees”).

At the outset of the review process, members of the Board’s independent staff and independent legal counsel considered any possible changes to the annual contract review materials furnished to the Contract Committee during the course of the previous year’s review and, as applicable, identified those changes to Putnam Management. Following these discussions and in consultation with the Contract Committee, the Independent Trustees’ independent legal counsel requested that Putnam Management and its affiliates furnish specified information, together with any additional information that Putnam Management considered relevant, to the Contract Committee. Over the course of several months ending in June 2022, the Contract Committee met on a number of occasions with representatives of Putnam Management, and separately in executive session, to consider the information that Putnam Management provided. Throughout this process, the Contract Committee was assisted by the members of the Board’s independent staff and by independent legal counsel for The Putnam Funds and the Independent Trustees.

In May 2022, the Contract Committee met in executive session to discuss and consider its recommendations with respect to the continuance of the contracts. At the Trustees’ June 2022 meeting, the Contract Committee met in executive session with the other Independent Trustees to review a summary of the key financial, performance and other data that the Contract Committee considered in the course of its review. The Contract Committee then presented its written report, which summarized the key factors that the Committee had considered and set forth its recommendations. The Contract Committee recommended, and the Independent Trustees approved, the continuance of your fund’s management contract and the approval of your fund’s amended and restated sub-management and sub-advisory contracts, effective July 1, 2022. (Because PIL and PAC are affiliates of Putnam Management and Putnam Management remains fully responsible for all services provided by PIL and PAC, the Trustees have not attempted to evaluate PIL or PAC as separate entities, and all subsequent references to Putnam Management below should be deemed to include reference to PIL and PAC as necessary or appropriate in the context.)

The Independent Trustees’ approval was based on the following conclusions:

• That the fee schedule in effect for your fund represented reasonable compensation in light of the nature and quality of the services being provided to the fund, the fees paid by competitive funds, the costs incurred by Putnam Management in providing services to the fund and the application of certain reductions and waivers noted below; and

• That the fee schedule in effect for your fund represented an appropriate sharing between fund shareholders and Putnam Management of any economies of scale as may exist in the management of the fund at current asset levels.

These conclusions were based on a comprehensive consideration of all information provided to the Trustees and were not the result of any single factor. Some of the factors that figured particularly in the Trustees’ deliberations and how the Trustees considered these factors are described below, although individual Trustees may have evaluated the information presented differently, giving different weights to various factors. It is also important to recognize that the management arrangements for your fund and the other Putnam funds are the result of many years of review and discussion between the Independent Trustees and Putnam

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 17

Management, that some aspects of the arrangements may receive greater scrutiny in some years than others and that the Trustees’ conclusions may be based, in part, on their consideration of fee arrangements in previous years. For example, with certain exceptions primarily involving newer or repositioned funds, the current fee arrangements under the vast majority of the funds’ management contracts were first implemented at the beginning of 2010 following extensive review by the Contract Committee and discussions with representatives of Putnam Management, as well as approval by shareholders.

Management fee schedules and total expenses

The Trustees reviewed the management fee schedules in effect for all Putnam funds, including fee levels and breakpoints. Under its management contract, your fund has the benefit of breakpoints in its management fee schedule that provide shareholders with reduced fee levels as assets under management in the Putnam family of funds increase. The Trustees also reviewed the total expenses of each Putnam fund, recognizing that in most cases management fees represented the major, but not the sole, determinant of total costs to fund shareholders. (Two funds have implemented so-called “all-in” management fees covering substantially all routine fund operating costs.) The Trustees considered that the proposed amended and restated sub-management and sub-advisory contracts would lower the sub-management and sub-advisory fees paid by Putnam Management to PIL and PAC, respectively.

In reviewing fees and expenses, the Trustees generally focus their attention on material changes in circumstances — for example, changes in assets under management, changes in a fund’s investment strategy, changes in Putnam Management’s operating costs or profitability, or changes in competitive practices in the mutual fund industry — that suggest that consideration of fee changes might be warranted. The Trustees concluded that the circumstances did not indicate that changes to the management fee schedule for your fund would be appropriate at this time.

Your fund’s management contract provides that its management fees will be adjusted up or down depending upon whether your fund’s performance is better or worse than the performance of an appropriate index of securities prices specified in the management contract. In the course of reviewing investment performance, the Trustees examined the operation of your fund’s performance fees and concluded that these fees were operating effectively to align further Putnam Management’s economic interests with those of the fund’s shareholders. In addition, the Trustees previously approved, at their meeting on January 24, 2020, an amended and restated management contract in connection with the proposed merger (which subsequently closed on May 18, 2020) of Putnam International Growth Fund, another mutual fund managed by Putnam Management, with and into your fund. The amended and restated management contract provided that, effective upon the closing of the merger, the performance adjustment calculation for your fund would take into account the net assets of Putnam International Growth Fund for periods before the consummation of the merger, except that if the use of combined assets would result in a higher management fee, only the assets of your fund would be used.

As in the past, the Trustees also focused on the competitiveness of each fund’s total expense ratio. The Trustees and Putnam Management and the funds’ investor servicing agent, Putnam Investor Services, Inc. (“PSERV”), have implemented expense limitations that were in effect during your fund’s fiscal year ending in 2021. These expense limitations were: (i) a contractual expense limitation applicable to specified open-end funds, including your fund, of 25 basis points on investor servicing fees and expenses and (ii) a contractual expense limitation applicable to specified open-end funds, including your fund, of 20 basis points on so-called “other expenses” (i.e., all expenses exclusive of management fees, distribution fees, investor servicing fees, investment-related expenses, interest, taxes, brokerage commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses and extraordinary expenses). These expense limitations attempt to maintain competitive expense levels for the funds. Most funds, including your fund, had sufficiently low expenses that these expense limitations were not operative during their fiscal years ending in 2021. Putnam Management and PSERV have agreed to maintain these expense limitations until at least December 30, 2023. In addition, Putnam Management contractually agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse expenses of your fund to the extent that expenses of the fund (excluding payments under the fund’s distribution plans, investor servicing fees, any applicable performance-based upward or downward adjustments to the fund’s

18 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

base management fee, brokerage, interest, taxes, investment-related expenses, extraordinary expenses and acquired fund fees and expenses) would exceed an annual rate of 0.78% of its average net assets through at least December 30, 2023. During its fiscal year ending in 2021, your fund’s expenses were reduced as a result of this expense limitation. Putnam Management and PSERV’s commitment to these expense limitation arrangements, which were intended to support an effort to have fund expenses meet competitive standards, was an important factor in the Trustees’ decision to approve the continuance of your fund’s management contract and to approve your fund’s amended and restated sub-management and sub-advisory contracts.

The Trustees reviewed comparative fee and expense information for a custom group of competitive funds selected by Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge”). This comparative information included your fund’s percentile ranking for effective management fees and total expenses (excluding any applicable 12b-1 fees), which provides a general indication of your fund’s relative standing. In the custom peer group, your fund ranked in the second quintile in effective management fees (determined for your fund and the other funds in the custom peer group based on fund asset size and the applicable contractual management fee schedule) and in the first quintile in total expenses (excluding any applicable 12b-1 fees) as of December 31, 2021. The first quintile represents the least expensive funds and the fifth quintile the most expensive funds. The fee and expense data reported by Broadridge as of December 31, 2021 reflected the most recent fiscal year-end data available in Broadridge’s database at that time.

In connection with their review of fund management fees and total expenses, the Trustees also reviewed the costs of the services provided and the profits realized by Putnam Management and its affiliates from their contractual relationships with the funds. This information included trends in revenues, expenses and profitability of Putnam Management and its affiliates relating to the investment management, investor servicing and distribution services provided to the funds. In this regard, the Trustees also reviewed an analysis of the revenues, expenses and profitability of Putnam Management and its affiliates, allocated on a fund-by-fund basis, with respect to the funds’ management, distribution and investor servicing contracts. For each fund, the analysis presented information about revenues, expenses and profitability for each of the agreements separately and for the agreements taken together on a combined basis. The Trustees concluded that, at current asset levels, the fee schedules in place for the Putnam funds, including the fee schedule for your fund, represented reasonable compensation for the services being provided and represented an appropriate sharing between fund shareholders and Putnam Management of any economies of scale as may exist in the management of the Putnam funds at that time.

The information examined by the Trustees in connection with their annual contract review for the Putnam funds included information regarding services provided and fees charged by Putnam Management and its affiliates to other clients, including collective investment trusts offered in the defined contribution and defined benefit retirement plan markets, sub-advised mutual funds, private funds sponsored by affiliates of Putnam Management, model-only separately managed accounts and Putnam Management’s exchange-traded funds. This information included, in cases where a product’s investment strategy corresponds with a fund’s strategy, comparisons of those fees with fees charged to the Putnam funds, as well as an assessment of the differences in the services provided to these clients as compared to the services provided to the Putnam funds. The Trustees observed that the differences in fee rates between these clients and the Putnam funds are by no means uniform when examined by individual asset sectors, suggesting that differences in the pricing of investment management services to these types of clients may reflect, among other things, historical competitive forces operating in separate marketplaces. The Trustees considered the fact that in many cases fee rates across different asset classes are higher on average for mutual funds than for other clients, and the Trustees also considered the differences between the services that Putnam Management provides to the Putnam funds and those that it provides to its other clients. The Trustees did not rely on these comparisons to any significant extent in concluding that the management fees paid by your fund are reasonable.

Investment performance

The quality of the investment process provided by Putnam Management represented a major factor in the Trustees’ evaluation of the quality of

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 19

services provided by Putnam Management under your fund’s management contract. The Trustees were assisted in their review of Putnam Management’s investment process and performance by the work of the investment oversight committees of the Trustees and the full Board of Trustees, which meet on a regular basis with individual portfolio managers and with senior management of Putnam Management’s Investment Division throughout the year. The Trustees concluded that Putnam Management generally provides a high-quality investment process — based on the experience and skills of the individuals assigned to the management of fund portfolios, the resources made available to them and in general Putnam Management’s ability to attract and retain high-quality personnel — but also recognized that this does not guarantee favorable investment results for every fund in every time period.

The Trustees considered that, in the aggregate, the Putnam funds’ performance was generally solid in 2021 against a backdrop of strong U.S. economic and financial market growth. The Trustees considered Putnam Management’s observation that, despite an environment of generally strong growth, there had been various headwinds experienced in 2021. For the one-year period ended December 31, 2021, the Trustees noted that the Putnam funds, on an asset-weighted basis, ranked in the 52nd percentile of their peers as determined by Lipper Inc. (“Lipper”) and, on an asset-weighted-basis, delivered a gross return that trailed their benchmarks by 0.1%. Over the longer-term, the Committee noted that, on an asset-weighted basis, the Putnam funds delivered strong aggregate performance relative to their Lipper peers over the three-, five- and ten-year periods ended December 31, 2021, ranking in the 31st, 29th and 21st percentiles, respectively, and that the funds, in the aggregate, outperformed their benchmarks on a gross basis for each of those periods.

In addition to the performance of the individual Putnam funds, the Trustees considered, as they had in prior years, the performance of The Putnam Fund complex versus competitor fund complexes. In particular, the Trustees considered The Putnam Fund complex’s performance as reported in the Barron’s/Lipper Fund Families survey (the “Survey”), which ranks mutual fund companies based on their performance across a variety of asset types. The Trustees noted that The Putnam Fund complex continued to rank highly in the Survey, especially over the longer-term, with The Putnam Funds ranking as the 6th best performing mutual fund complex out of 45 complexes for the ten-year period and 13th out of 49 complexes for the five-year period. The Trustees noted that 2021 marked the fifth consecutive year that The Putnam Funds have ranked in the top ten fund complexes for the ten-year period. The Trustees also considered that The Putnam Fund complex’s Survey performance over the one-year period was solid, with The Putnam Funds ranking 27th out of 51 complexes. In addition to the Survey, the Trustees also considered the Putnam funds’ ratings assigned by Morningstar Inc., noting that 25 of the funds were four- or five-star rated at the end of 2021 (representing a decrease of one fund year-over-year) and that this included nine funds that had achieved a five-star rating (representing an increase of two funds year-over-year). They also noted, however, the disappointing investment performance of some Putnam funds for periods ended December 31, 2021 and considered information provided by Putnam Management regarding the factors contributing to the underperformance and actions being taken to improve the performance of these particular funds. The Trustees indicated their intention to continue to monitor closely the performance of those funds and evaluate whether additional actions to address areas of underperformance may be warranted.

For purposes of the Trustees’ evaluation of the Putnam funds’ investment performance, the Trustees generally focus on a competitive industry ranking of each fund’s total net return over a one-year, three-year and five-year period. For a number of Putnam funds with relatively unique investment mandates for which Putnam Management informed the Trustees that meaningful competitive performance rankings are not considered to be available, the Trustees evaluated performance based on their total gross and net returns and comparisons of those returns to the returns of selected investment benchmarks. In the case of your fund, the Trustees considered that its class A share cumulative total return performance at net asset value was in the following quartiles of its Lipper peer group (Lipper Emerging Markets Funds) for the one-year, three-year and five-year periods ended December 31, 2021 (the first quartile representing the best-performing funds and the fourth quartile the worst-performing funds):

20 Emerging Markets Equity Fund


One-year period	3rd
Three-year period	1st
Five-year period	1st

Over the one-year, three-year and five-year periods ended December 31, 2021, there were 764, 694 and 590 funds, respectively, in your fund’s Lipper peer group. (When considering performance information, shareholders should be mindful that past performance is not a guarantee of future results.)

The Trustees considered Putnam Management’s continued efforts to support fund performance through certain initiatives, including structuring compensation for portfolio managers to enhance accountability for fund performance, emphasizing accountability in the portfolio management process and affirming its commitment to a fundamental-driven approach to investing. The Trustees noted further that Putnam Management had made selective hires and internal promotions in 2021 to strengthen its investment team.

Brokerage and soft-dollar allocations; investor servicing

The Trustees considered various potential benefits that Putnam Management may receive in connection with the services it provides under the management contract with your fund. These include benefits related to brokerage allocation and the use of soft dollars, whereby a portion of the commissions paid by a fund for brokerage may be used to acquire research services that are expected to be useful to Putnam Management in managing the assets of the fund and of other clients. Subject to policies established by the Trustees, soft dollars generated by these means are used predominantly to acquire brokerage and research services (including third-party research and market data) that enhance Putnam Management’s investment capabilities and supplement Putnam Management’s internal research efforts. The Trustees indicated their continued intent to monitor regulatory and industry developments in this area with the assistance of their Brokerage Committee. In addition, with the assistance of their Brokerage Committee, the Trustees indicated their continued intent to monitor the allocation of the Putnam funds’ brokerage in order to ensure that the principle of seeking best price and execution remains paramount in the portfolio trading process.

Putnam Management may also receive benefits from payments that the funds make to Putnam Management’s affiliates for investor or distribution services. In conjunction with the annual review of your fund’s management, sub-management and sub-advisory contracts, the Trustees reviewed your fund’s investor servicing agreement with PSERV and its distributor’s contract and distribution plans with Putnam Retail Management Limited Partnership (“PRM”), both of which are affiliates of Putnam Management. The Trustees concluded that the fees payable by the funds to PSERV and PRM, as applicable, for such services are fair and reasonable in relation to the nature and quality of such services, the fees paid by competitive funds and the costs incurred by PSERV and PRM, as applicable, in providing such services. Furthermore, the Trustees were of the view that the investor services provided by PSERV were required for the operation of the funds, and that they were of a quality at least equal to those provided by other providers.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 21

Audited financial statements

These sections of the report, as well as the accompanying Notes, preceded by the Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, constitute the fund’s audited financial statements.

The fund’s portfolio lists all the fund’s investments and their values as of the last day of the reporting period. Holdings are organized by asset type and industry sector, country, or state to show areas of concentration and diversification.

Statement of assets and liabilities shows how the fund’s net assets and share price are determined. All investment and non-investment assets are added together. Any unpaid expenses and other liabilities are subtracted from this total. The result is divided by the number of shares to determine the net asset value per share, which is calculated separately for each class of shares. (For funds with preferred shares, the amount subtracted from total assets includes the liquidation preference of preferred shares.)

Statement of operations shows the fund’s net investment gain or loss. This is done by first adding up all the fund’s earnings — from dividends and interest income — and subtracting its operating expenses to determine net investment income (or loss). Then, any net gain or loss the fund realized on the sales of its holdings — as well as any unrealized gains or losses over the period — is added to or subtracted from the net investment result to determine the fund’s net gain or loss for the fiscal period.

Statement of changes in net assets shows how the fund’s net assets were affected by the fund’s net investment gain or loss, by distributions to shareholders, and by changes in the number of the fund’s shares. It lists distributions and their sources (net investment income or realized capital gains) over the current reporting period and the most recent fiscal year-end. The distributions listed here may not match the sources listed in the Statement of operations because the distributions are determined on a tax basis and may be paid in a different period from the one in which they were earned.

Financial highlights provide an overview of the fund’s investment results, per-share distributions, expense ratios, net investment income ratios, and portfolio turnover in one summary table, reflecting the five most recent reporting periods. In a semiannual report, the highlights table also includes the current reporting period.

22 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Board of Trustees of Putnam Funds Trust and Shareholders of
Putnam Emerging Markets Equity Fund:

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities, including the fund’s portfolio, of Putnam Emerging Markets Equity Fund (one of the funds constituting Putnam Funds Trust, referred to hereafter as the “Fund”) as of August 31, 2022, the related statement of operations for the year ended August 31, 2022, the statement of changes in net assets for each of the two years in the period ended August 31, 2022, including the related notes, and the financial highlights for each of the three years in the period ended August 31, 2022 (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund as of August 31, 2022, the results of its operations for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the two years in the period ended August 31, 2022 and the financial highlights for each of the three years in the period ended August 31, 2022 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

The financial statements of the Fund as of and for the year ended August 31, 2019 and the financial highlights for each of the periods ended on or prior to August 31, 2019 (not presented herein, other than the financial highlights) were audited by other auditors whose report dated October 8, 2019 expressed an unqualified opinion on those financial statements and financial highlights.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Fund’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits of these financial statements in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud.

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of August 31, 2022 by correspondence with the custodian, transfer agent and brokers; when replies were not received from brokers, we performed other auditing procedures. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Boston, Massachusetts
October 7, 2022

We have served as the auditor of one or more investment companies in the Putnam Investments family of funds since at least 1957. We have not been able to determine the specific year we began serving as auditor.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 23


The fund’s portfolio 8/31/22


COMMON STOCKS (97.2%)*	Shares	Value
Airlines (1.0%)
Copa Holdings SA Class A (Panama) ^{† S}	55,108	$3,923,690
		3,923,690
Banks (21.2%)
Alinma Bank (Saudi Arabia)	1,267,913	12,768,717
Banco do Brasil SA (Brazil)	614,100	4,921,157
Bank Central Asia Tbk PT (Indonesia)	22,199,700	12,221,946
Bank Mandiri Persero Tbk PT (Indonesia)	10,730,000	6,367,053
China Merchants Bank Co., Ltd. Class H (China)	820,000	4,189,424
Grupo Financiero Banorte SAB de CV Class O (Mexico)	1,272,500	7,516,318
ICICI Bank, Ltd. (India)	1,967,578	21,645,415
KB Financial Group, Inc. (South Korea)	266,534	9,782,210
		79,412,240
Capital markets (0.4%)
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Ltd. (Hong Kong)	39,800	1,602,562
		1,602,562
Chemicals (1.1%)
Fertiglobe PLC (United Arab Emirates)	872,761	1,333,106
Yunnan Energy New Material Co., Ltd. Class A (China)	96,946	2,708,448
		4,041,554
Electrical equipment (0.5%)
KEI Industries, Ltd. (India)	110,300	2,005,776
		2,005,776
Electronic equipment, instruments, and components (3.1%)
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)	1,838,000	6,562,358
Sinbon Electronics Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)	528,000	4,883,969
		11,446,327
Food and staples retailing (5.6%)
Dino Polska SA (Poland) ^†	65,191	4,755,757
Shoprite Holdings, Ltd. (South Africa)	413,722	5,616,672
Sumber Alfaria Trijaya Tbk PT (Indonesia)	13,032,700	1,910,860
WalMart de Mexico (Walmex) SAB de CV (Mexico)	2,668,100	8,743,353
		21,026,642
Food products (1.7%)
China Mengniu Dairy Co., Ltd. (China)	1,437,000	6,493,101
		6,493,101
Health-care equipment and supplies (1.0%)
Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. Class A (China)	87,400	3,776,023
		3,776,023
Health-care providers and services (3.0%)
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, Ltd. (India)	78,092	4,217,913
Max Healthcare Institute, Ltd. (India) ^†	887,943	4,316,367
Mouwasat Medical Services Co. (Saudi Arabia)	39,685	2,549,426
		11,083,706
Hotels, restaurants, and leisure (0.4%)
Leejam Sports Co. JSC (Saudi Arabia)	59,144	1,316,607
		1,316,607
Household durables (0.3%)
Dixon Technologies (India), Ltd. (India)	18,691	949,762
		949,762


24 Emerging Markets Equity Fund


COMMON STOCKS (97.2%)* cont.	Shares	Value
Insurance (3.6%)
AIA Group, Ltd. (Hong Kong)	850,800	$8,204,865
Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China, Ltd. Class H (China)	909,000	5,348,556
		13,553,421
Interactive media and services (5.7%)
NAVER Corp. (South Korea)	27,059	4,799,328
Tencent Holdings, Ltd. (China)	402,900	16,687,278
		21,486,606
Internet and direct marketing retail (10.4%)
Alibaba Group Holding, Ltd. (China) ^†	1,348,968	16,062,119
JD.com, Inc. Class A (China)	245,745	7,777,281
JD.com, Inc. ADR (China) ^S	39,200	2,488,808
Meituan Class B (China) ^†	381,800	9,149,153
MercadoLibre, Inc. (Brazil) ^†	4,315	3,690,878
		39,168,239
IT Services (3.2%)
Tata Consultancy Services, Ltd. (India)	299,803	11,965,088
		11,965,088
Machinery (2.0%)
Shenzhen Inovance Technology Co., Ltd. Class A (China)	554,160	4,812,901
Techtronic Industries Co., Ltd. (TTI) (Hong Kong)	228,500	2,688,308
		7,501,209
Metals and mining (1.2%)
Anglo American PLC (Johannesburg Exchange) (United Kingdom)	87,266	2,797,452
Vale Indonesia Tbk PT (Indonesia) ^†	4,552,900	1,861,168
		4,658,620
Oil, gas, and consumable fuels (7.8%)
PetroChina Co., Ltd. Class H (China)	9,210,000	4,301,117
Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Preference) (Brazil)	385,900	2,464,912
PTT Exploration & Production PCL (Thailand)	1,206,400	5,574,999
Reliance Industries, Ltd. (India) ^†	512,662	16,771,121
		29,112,149
Professional services (0.9%)
Centre Testing International Group Co., Ltd. Class A (China)	1,116,856	3,554,310
		3,554,310
Real estate management and development (0.5%)
Phoenix Mills, Ltd. (The) (India)	109,410	1,920,468
		1,920,468
Semiconductors and semiconductor equipment (11.3%)
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. ^†	43,200	3,666,384
ASPEED Technology, Inc. (Taiwan)	29,700	1,955,738
LEENO Industrial, Inc. (South Korea)	6,408	682,052
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)	2,206,889	36,094,252
		42,398,426
Software (1.6%)
Totvs SA (Brazil)	1,069,520	5,869,367
		5,869,367
Technology hardware, storage, and peripherals (4.2%)
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (South Korea)	359,326	15,917,655
		15,917,655


Emerging Markets Equity Fund 25


COMMON STOCKS (97.2%)* cont.	Shares	Value
Textiles, apparel, and luxury goods (3.4%)
Li Ning Co., Ltd. (China)	674,000	$6,136,705
LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (France)	10,315	6,671,700
		12,808,405
Transportation infrastructure (1.2%)
International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (Philippines)	1,367,310	4,398,477
		4,398,477
Wireless telecommunication services (0.9%)
MTN Group, Ltd. (South Africa)	487,253	3,527,679
		3,527,679
Total common stocks (cost $360,175,756)		$364,918,109


UNITS (1.1%)*	Units	Value
Banco BTG Pactual SA (Brazil)	875,000	$4,280,476
Total units (cost $4,466,312)		$4,280,476


INVESTMENT COMPANIES (0.6%)*	Shares	Value
iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF	44,700	$2,166,162
Total investment companies (cost $2,182,075)		$2,166,162


SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS (2.6%)*	Shares	Value
Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC 2.47% ^d	5,251,990	$5,251,990
Putnam Short Term Investment Fund Class P 2.33% ^L	4,451,141	4,451,141
Total short-term investments (cost $9,703,131)		$9,703,131


TOTAL INVESTMENTS
Total investments (cost $376,527,274)	$381,067,878


Key to holding’s abbreviations
ADR	American Depository Receipts: Represents ownership of foreign securities on deposit with a custodian bank.
ETF	Exchange Traded Fund
JSC	Joint Stock Company


Notes to the fund’s portfolio
	Unless noted otherwise, the notes to the fund’s portfolio are for the close of the fund’s reporting period, which ran from September 1, 2021 through August 31, 2022 (the reporting period). Within the following notes to the portfolio, references to “Putnam Management” represent Putnam Investment Management, LLC, the fund’s manager, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Putnam Investments, LLC and references to “ASC 820” represent Accounting Standards Codification 820 Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures.
^*	Percentages indicated are based on net assets of $375,507,421.
^†	This security is non-income-producing.
^d	Affiliated company. See Notes 1 and 5 to the financial statements regarding securities lending. The rate quoted in the security description is the annualized 7-day yield of the fund at the close of the reporting period.
^L	Affiliated company (Note 5). The rate quoted in the security description is the annualized 7-day yield of the fund at the close of the reporting period.
^S	Security on loan, in part or in entirety, at the close of the reporting period (Note 1).


DIVERSIFICATION BY COUNTRY
Distribution of investments by country of risk at the close of the reporting period, excluding collateral received, if any (as a percentage of Portfolio Value):
China	24.9%	South Africa	2.4%
India	17.0	France	1.8
Taiwan	13.2	Thailand	1.5
South Korea	8.3	Poland	1.3
Indonesia	6.0	Philippines	1.2
Brazil	5.6	Panama	1.0
Saudi Arabia	4.4	United Kingdom	0.7
Mexico	4.3	United Arab Emirates	0.4
Hong Kong	3.3	Total	100.0%
United States	2.7

ASC 820 establishes a three-level hierarchy for disclosure of fair value measurements. The valuation hierarchy is based upon the transparency of inputs to the valuation of the fund’s investments. The three levels are defined as follows:

Level 1: Valuations based on quoted prices for identical securities in active markets.

Level 2: Valuations based on quoted prices in markets that are not active or for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.

Level 3: Valuations based on inputs that are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement.

The following is a summary of the inputs used to value the fund’s net assets as of the close of the reporting period:


		Valuation inputs
Investments in securities:	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3
Common stocks*:
Communication services	$—	$25,014,285	$—
Consumer discretionary	6,179,686	48,063,327	—
Consumer staples	8,743,353	18,776,390	—
Energy	8,039,911	21,072,238	—
Financials	12,437,475	82,130,748	—
Health care	—	14,859,729	—
Industrials	3,923,690	17,459,772	—
Information technology	9,535,751	78,061,112	—
Materials	—	8,700,174	—
Real estate	—	1,920,468	—
Total common stocks	48,859,866	316,058,243	—
Investment companies	2,166,162	—	—
Units	4,280,476	—	—
Short-term investments	—	9,703,131	—
Totals by level	$55,306,504	$325,761,374	$—
* Common stock classifications are presented at the sector level, which may differ from the fund’s portfolio presentation.
At the start and close of the reporting period, Level 3 investments in securities represented less than 1% of the fund’s net assets and were not considered a significant portion of the fund’s portfolio.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.


Emerging Markets Equity Fund 27

Statement of assets and liabilities 8/31/22


ASSETS
Investment in securities, at value, including $5,144,887 of securities on loan (Note 1):
Unaffiliated issuers (identified cost $366,824,143)	$371,364,747
Affiliated issuers (identified cost $9,703,131) (Notes 1 and 5)	9,703,131
Foreign currency (cost $639,455) (Note 1)	634,887
Dividends, interest and other receivables	738,020
Receivable for investments sold	1,314,951
Foreign tax reclaim	232,067
Receivable for shares of the fund sold	258,513
Prepaid assets	25,994
Total assets	384,272,310

LIABILITIES
Payable for investments purchased	1,419,746
Payable for shares of the fund repurchased	249,510
Payable for compensation of Manager (Note 2)	725
Payable for custodian fees (Note 2)	159,564
Payable for investor servicing fees (Note 2)	147,813
Payable for Trustee compensation and expenses (Note 2)	183,268
Payable for administrative services (Note 2)	1,672
Payable for distribution fees (Note 2)	95,279
Payable for foreign capital gains taxes	1,111,998
Collateral on securities loaned, at value (Note 1)	5,251,990
Other accrued expenses	143,324
Total liabilities	8,764,889

Net assets	$375,507,421

REPRESENTED BY
Paid-in capital (Unlimited shares authorized) (Notes 1 and 4)	$453,797,121
Total distributable earnings (Note 1)	(78,289,700)
Total — Representing net assets applicable to capital shares outstanding	$375,507,421

COMPUTATION OF NET ASSET VALUE AND OFFERING PRICE
Net asset value and redemption price per class A share
($197,473,971 divided by 17,502,360 shares)	$11.28
Offering price per class A share (100/94.25 of $11.28)^*	$11.97
Net asset value and offering price per class B share ($1,226,725 divided by 116,483 shares)^**	$10.53
Net asset value and offering price per class C share ($7,088,250 divided by 677,044 shares)^**	$10.47
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per class R share
($4,510,309 divided by 403,803 shares)	$11.17
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per class R6 share
($27,654,902 divided by 2,400,326 shares)	$11.52
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per class Y share
($137,553,264 divided by 11,987,033 shares)	$11.48

^*On single retail sales of less than $50,000. On sales of $50,000 or more the offering price is reduced.

^**Redemption price per share is equal to net asset value less any applicable contingent deferred sales charge.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

28 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Statement of operations Year ended 8/31/22


INVESTMENT INCOME
Dividends (net of foreign tax of $904,649)	$8,370,747
Interest (including interest income of $19,632 from investments in affiliated issuers) (Note 5)	19,632
Securities lending (net of expenses) (Notes 1 and 5)	20,559
Total investment income	8,410,938

EXPENSES
Compensation of Manager (Note 2)	4,921,719
Investor servicing fees (Note 2)	1,012,649
Custodian fees (Note 2)	336,869
Trustee compensation and expenses (Note 2)	19,807
Distribution fees (Note 2)	772,737
Administrative services (Note 2)	14,064
Other	439,792
Fees waived and reimbursed by Manager (Note 2)	(1,459,482)
Total expenses	6,058,155
Expense reduction (Note 2)	(613)
Net expenses	6,057,542

Net investment income	2,353,396

REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS)
Net realized gain (loss) on:
Securities from unaffiliated issuers (net of foreign tax of $2,319,476) (Notes 1 and 3)	(76,523,146)
Foreign currency transactions (Note 1)	(506,157)
Total net realized loss	(77,029,303)
Change in net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on:
Securities from unaffiliated issuers (net of decrease in deferred foreign taxes of $1,863,313)	(108,382,251)
Assets and liabilities in foreign currencies	(44,190)
Total change in net unrealized depreciation	(108,426,441)

Net loss on investments	(185,455,744)

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations	$(183,102,348)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 29

Statement of changes in net assets


INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS	Year ended 8/31/22	Year ended 8/31/21
Operations
Net investment income (loss)	$2,353,396	$(13,535)
Net realized gain (loss) on investments
and foreign currency transactions	(77,029,303)	38,430,952
Change in net unrealized appreciation (depreciation)
of investments and assets and liabilities
in foreign currencies	(108,426,441)	37,801,184
Net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting
from operations	(183,102,348)	76,218,601
Distributions to shareholders (Note 1):
From ordinary income
Net investment income
Class A	(129,587)	(346,265)
Class B	(1,142)	—
Class C	(5,588)	—
Class R	(2,730)	(11,401)
Class R6	(16,951)	(95,291)
Class Y	(99,009)	(323,005)
Net realized short-term gain on investments
Class A	(7,112,162)	(4,719,238)
Class B	(62,676)	(58,808)
Class C	(306,689)	(215,670)
Class R	(149,816)	(95,254)
Class R6	(930,304)	(425,524)
Class Y	(5,434,022)	(1,942,679)
From net realized long-term gain on investments
Class A	(7,205,641)	—
Class B	(63,499)	—
Class C	(310,719)	—
Class R	(151,784)	—
Class R6	(942,531)	—
Class Y	(5,505,442)	—
Increase (decrease) from capital share transactions (Note 4)	(46,019,426)	173,523,205
Total increase (decrease) in net assets	(257,552,066)	241,508,671

NET ASSETS
Beginning of year	633,059,487	391,550,816
End of year	$375,507,421	$633,059,487

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

30 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Financial highlights
(For a common share outstanding throughout the period)


	INVESTMENT OPERATIONS				LESS DISTRIBUTIONS					RATIOS AND SUPPLEMENTAL DATA
											Ratio	Ratio of net
	Net asset		Net realized								of expenses	investment
	value,		and unrealized	Total from	From net	From		Net asset	Total return	Net assets,	to average	income (loss)	Portfolio
	beginning	Net investment	gain (loss)	investment	investment	net realized gain	Total	value, end	at net asset	end of period	net assets	to average	turnover
Period ended	of period	income (loss)^a	on investments	operations	income	on investments	distributions	of period	value (%)^b	(in thousands)	(%)^c,d	net assets (%)^c	(%)
Class A
August 31, 2022	$17.25	.05	(5.20)	(5.15)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$11.28	(31.05)	$197,474	1.33	.38	127
August 31, 2021	14.68	(.01)	2.86	2.85	(.02)	(.26)	(.28)	17.25	19.50	315,105	1.29	(.07)	124
August 31, 2020	11.05	.08^e	3.69	3.77	(.14)	—	(.14)	14.68	34.30	269,748	1.31	.60^e	127
August 31, 2019	11.75	.09	(.57)	(.48)	(.01)	(.21)	(.22)	11.05	(3.96)	36,325	1.26	.80	175
August 31, 2018	11.82	.08	(.14)	(.06)	(.01)	—	(.01)	11.75	(.53)	41,379	1.57	.67	172
Class B
August 31, 2022	$16.28	(.07)^e	(4.86)	(4.93)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$10.53	(31.57)	$1,227	2.08	(.49)^e	127
August 31, 2021	13.95	(.13)	2.72	2.59	—	(.26)	(.26)	16.28	18.65	2,993	2.04	(.81)	124
August 31, 2020	10.52	(.05)	3.54	3.49	(.06)	—	(.06)	13.95	33.26	3,493	2.06	(.43)	127
August 31, 2019	11.27	.02	(.56)	(.54)	—	(.21)	(.21)	10.52	(4.67)	1,998	2.01	.17	175
August 31, 2018	11.41	(.01)	(.13)	(.14)	—	—	—	11.27	(1.23)	2,650	2.32	(.09)	172
Class C
August 31, 2022	$16.19	(.06)	(4.84)	(4.90)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$10.47	(31.55)	$7,088	2.08	(.42)	127
August 31, 2021	13.88	(.13)	2.70	2.57	—	(.26)	(.26)	16.19	18.60	13,498	2.04	(.82)	124
August 31, 2020	10.48	(.05)	3.52	3.47	(.07)	—	(.07)	13.88	33.27	11,606	2.06	(.47)	127
August 31, 2019	11.23	.02	(.56)	(.54)	—	(.21)	(.21)	10.48	(4.69)	6,546	2.01	.19	175
August 31, 2018	11.37	(.02)	(.12)	(.14)	—	—	—	11.23	(1.23)	7,163	2.32	(.12)	172
Class R
August 31, 2022	$17.13	.02	(5.16)	(5.14)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$11.17	(31.21)	$4,510	1.58	.17	127
August 31, 2021	14.62	(.06)	2.86	2.80	(.03)	(.26)	(.29)	17.13	19.25	6,419	1.54	(.35)	124
August 31, 2020	10.97	.01	3.70	3.71	(.06)	—	(.06)	14.62	33.86	1,119	1.56	.11	127
August 31, 2019	11.68	.08	(.58)	(.50)	—	(.21)	(.21)	10.97	(4.16)	1,093	1.51	.74	175
August 31, 2018	11.77	.04	(.13)	(.09)	—	—	—	11.68	(.76)	1,100	1.82	.32	172
Class R6
August 31, 2022	$17.53	.11	(5.30)	(5.19)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$11.52	(30.77)	$27,655	.91	.81	127
August 31, 2021	14.88	.05	2.92	2.97	(.06)	(.26)	(.32)	17.53	20.06	41,708	.89	.31	124
August 31, 2020	11.22	.10	3.77	3.87	(.21)	—	(.21)	14.88	34.81	22,945	.89	.76	127
August 31, 2019	11.89	.17	(.61)	(.44)	(.02)	(.21)	(.23)	11.22	(3.55)	10,143	.82	1.47	175
August 31, 2018 ^†	13.13	.12	(1.36)	(1.24)	—	—	—	11.89	(9.44)^*	7,219	.32^*	.98^*	172
Class Y
August 31, 2022	$17.49	.08	(5.27)	(5.19)	(.01)	(.81)	(.82)	$11.48	(30.84)	$137,553	1.08	.60	127
August 31, 2021	14.86	.02	2.91	2.93	(.04)	(.26)	(.30)	17.49	19.84	253,336	1.04	.13	124
August 31, 2020	11.19	.06	3.79	3.85	(.18)	—	(.18)	14.86	34.66	82,640	1.06	.46	127
August 31, 2019	11.88	.13	(.59)	(.46)	(.02)	(.21)	(.23)	11.19	(3.74)	69,989	1.01	1.17	175
August 31, 2018	11.94	.13	(.16)	(.03)	(.03)	—	(.03)	11.88	(.26)	81,472	1.32	1.00	172

See notes to financial highlights at the end of this section.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.


32 Emerging Markets Equity Fund	Emerging Markets Equity Fund 33

Financial highlights cont.

^*Not annualized.

^†For the period May 22, 2018 (commencement of operations) to August 31, 2018.

^aPer share net investment income (loss) has been determined on the basis of the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period.

^bTotal return assumes dividend reinvestment and does not reflect the effect of sales charges.

^cReflects an involuntary contractual expense limitation in effect during the period. As a result of such limitation, the expenses of each class reflect a reduction of the following amounts as a percentage of the average net assets of each class (Note 2):


	8/31/22	8/31/21	8/31/20	8/31/19	8/31/18
Class A	0.29%	0.27%	0.48%	0.45%	0.21%
Class B	0.29	0.27	0.48	0.45	0.21
Class C	0.29	0.27	0.48	0.45	0.21
Class R	0.29	0.27	0.48	0.45	0.21
Class R6	0.29	0.27	0.48	0.45	0.06
Class Y	0.29	0.27	0.48	0.45	0.21

^dIncludes amounts paid through expense offset and/or brokerage/service arrangements, if any (Note 2). Also excludes acquired fund fees and expenses, if any.

^eThe net investment income ratio and per share amount shown for the period ending may not correspond with the expected class specific differences for the period due to the timing of subscriptions into or redemptions out of the class.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

34 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Notes to financial statements 8/31/22

Within the following Notes to financial statements, references to “State Street” represent State Street Bank and Trust Company, references to “the SEC” represent the Securities and Exchange Commission, references to “Putnam Management” represent Putnam Investment Management, LLC, the fund’s manager, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Putnam Investments, LLC and references to “OTC”, if any, represent over-the-counter. Unless otherwise noted, the “reporting period” represents the period from September 1, 2021 through August 31, 2022.

Putnam Emerging Markets Equity Fund (the fund) is a non-diversified series (prior to September 29, 2022, the fund was a diversified series) of Putnam Funds Trust (the Trust), a Massachusetts business trust registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, as an open-end management investment company. The goal of the fund is to seek long-term capital appreciation. The fund invests mainly in common stocks (growth or value stocks or both) of emerging market companies of any size that Putnam Management believes have favorable investment potential. For example, the fund may purchase stocks of companies with stock prices that reflect a value lower than that which Putnam Management places on the company. Putnam Management may also consider other factors that Putnam Management believes will cause the stock price to rise. Under normal circumstances, Putnam Management invests at least 80% of the fund’s net assets in equity securities of emerging market companies. This policy may be changed only after 60 days’ notice to shareholders. Emerging markets include countries in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index or that Putnam Management considers to be emerging markets based on Putnam Management’s evaluation of their level of economic development or the size and nature of their securities markets. Putnam Management may consider, among other factors, a company’s valuation, financial strength, growth potential, competitive position in its industry, projected future earnings, cash flows and dividends when deciding whether to buy or sell investments. The fund may also use derivatives, such as futures, options, certain foreign currency transactions, warrants and swap contracts, for both hedging and non-hedging purposes.

The fund offers the following share classes. The expenses for each class of shares may differ based on the distribution and investor servicing fees of each class, which are identified in Note 2.


Share class	Sales charge	Contingent deferred charge	Conversion feature
		1.00% on certain redemptions of shares
Class A	Up to 5.75%	bought with no initial sales charge	None
			Converts to class A shares
Class B^*	None	5.00% phased out over six years	after 8 years
			Converts to class A shares
Class C	None	1.00% eliminated after one year	after 8 years
Class R^†	None	None	None
Class R6^†	None	None	None
Class Y^†	None	None	None

^*Purchases of class B shares are closed to new and existing investors except by exchange from class B shares of another Putnam fund or through dividend and/or capital gains reinvestment.

^†Not available to all investors.

In the normal course of business, the fund enters into contracts that may include agreements to indemnify another party under given circumstances. The fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown as this would involve future claims that may be, but have not yet been, made against the fund. However, the fund’s management team expects the risk of material loss to be remote.

The fund has entered into contractual arrangements with an investment adviser, administrator, distributor, shareholder servicing agent and custodian, who each provide services to the fund. Unless expressly stated otherwise, shareholders are not parties to, or intended beneficiaries of these contractual arrangements, and these contractual arrangements are not intended to create any shareholder right to enforce them against the service providers or to seek any remedy under them against the service providers, either directly or on behalf of the fund.

Under the fund’s Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust, any claims asserted against or on behalf of the Putnam Funds, including claims against Trustees and Officers, must be brought in state and federal courts located within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 35

Note 1: Significant accounting policies

The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently followed by the fund in the preparation of its financial statements. The preparation of financial statements is in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities in the financial statements and the reported amounts of increases and decreases in net assets from operations. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Subsequent events after the Statement of assets and liabilities date through the date that the financial statements were issued have been evaluated in the preparation of the financial statements.

Investment income, realized and unrealized gains and losses and expenses of the fund are borne pro-rata based on the relative net assets of each class to the total net assets of the fund, except that each class bears expenses unique to that class (including the distribution fees applicable to such classes). Each class votes as a class only with respect to its own distribution plan or other matters on which a class vote is required by law or determined by the Trustees. If the fund were liquidated, shares of each class would receive their pro-rata share of the net assets of the fund. In addition, the Trustees declare separate dividends on each class of shares.

Security valuation Portfolio securities and other investments are valued using policies and procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees. The Trustees have formed a Pricing Committee to oversee the implementation of these procedures and have delegated responsibility for valuing the fund’s assets in accordance with these procedures to Putnam Management. Putnam Management has established an internal Valuation Committee that is responsible for making fair value determinations, evaluating the effectiveness of the pricing policies of the fund and reporting to the Pricing Committee.

Investments for which market quotations are readily available are valued at the last reported sales price on their principal exchange, or official closing price for certain markets, and are classified as Level 1 securities under Accounting Standards Codification 820 Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (ASC 820). If no sales are reported, as in the case of some securities that are traded OTC, a security is valued at its last reported bid price and is generally categorized as a Level 2 security.

Investments in open-end investment companies (excluding exchange-traded funds), if any, which can be classified as Level 1 or Level 2 securities, are valued based on their net asset value. The net asset value of such investment companies equals the total value of their assets less their liabilities and divided by the number of their outstanding shares.

Many securities markets and exchanges outside the U.S. close prior to the scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange and therefore the closing prices for securities in such markets or on such exchanges may not fully reflect events that occur after such close but before the scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange. Accordingly, on certain days, the fund will fair value certain foreign equity securities taking into account multiple factors including movements in the U.S. securities markets, currency valuations and comparisons to the valuation of American Depository Receipts, exchange-traded funds and futures contracts. The foreign equity securities, which would generally be classified as Level 1 securities, will be transferred to Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy when they are valued at fair value. The number of days on which fair value prices will be used will depend on market activity and it is possible that fair value prices will be used by the fund to a significant extent. At the close of the reporting period, fair value pricing was used for certain foreign securities in the portfolio. Securities quoted in foreign currencies, if any, are translated into U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate. Short-term securities with remaining maturities of 60 days or less are valued using an independent pricing service approved by the Trustees, and are classified as Level 2 securities.

To the extent a pricing service or dealer is unable to value a security or provides a valuation that Putnam Management does not believe accurately reflects the security’s fair value, the security will be valued at fair value by Putnam Management in accordance with policies and procedures approved by the Trustees. Certain investments, including certain restricted and illiquid securities and derivatives, are also valued at fair value following procedures approved by the Trustees. These valuations consider such factors as significant market or specific security events such as interest rate or credit quality changes, various relationships with other securities, discount rates, U.S. Treasury, U.S. swap and credit yields, index levels, convexity exposures, recovery rates, sales and other multiples and resale restrictions. These securities are classified as Level 2 or as Level 3 depending on the priority of the significant inputs.

To assess the continuing appropriateness of fair valuations, the Valuation Committee reviews and affirms the reasonableness of such valuations on a regular basis after considering all relevant information that is reasonably available. Such valuations and procedures are reviewed periodically by the Trustees. The fair value of securities is generally determined as the amount that the fund could reasonably expect to realize from an orderly disposition

36 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

of such securities over a reasonable period of time. By its nature, a fair value price is a good faith estimate of the value of a security in a current sale and does not reflect an actual market price, which may be different by a material amount.

Security transactions and related investment income Security transactions are recorded on the trade date (the date the order to buy or sell is executed). Gains or losses on securities sold are determined on the identified cost basis.

Interest income, net of any applicable withholding taxes, if any, is recorded on the accrual basis. Dividend income, net of any applicable withholding taxes, is recognized on the ex-dividend date except that certain dividends from foreign securities, if any, are recognized as soon as the fund is informed of the ex-dividend date. Non-cash dividends, if any, are recorded at the fair value of the securities received. Dividends representing a return of capital or capital gains, if any, are reflected as a reduction of cost and/or as a realized gain.

Foreign currency translation The accounting records of the fund are maintained in U.S. dollars. The fair value of foreign securities, currency holdings, and other assets and liabilities is recorded in the books and records of the fund after translation to U.S. dollars based on the exchange rates on that day. The cost of each security is determined using historical exchange rates. Income and withholding taxes are translated at prevailing exchange rates when earned or incurred. The fund does not isolate that portion of realized or unrealized gains or losses resulting from changes in the foreign exchange rate on investments from fluctuations arising from changes in the market prices of the securities. Such gains and losses are included with the net realized and unrealized gain or loss on investments. Net realized gains and losses on foreign currency transactions represent net realized exchange gains or losses on disposition of foreign currencies, currency gains and losses realized between the trade and settlement dates on securities transactions and the difference between the amount of investment income and foreign withholding taxes recorded on the fund’s books and the U.S. dollar equivalent amounts actually received or paid. Net unrealized appreciation and depreciation of assets and liabilities in foreign currencies arise from changes in the value of assets and liabilities other than investments at the period end, resulting from changes in the exchange rate.

Securities lending The fund may lend securities, through its agent, to qualified borrowers in order to earn additional income. The loans are collateralized by cash in an amount at least equal to the fair value of the securities loaned. The fair value of securities loaned is determined daily and any additional required collateral is allocated to the fund on the next business day. The remaining maturities of the securities lending transactions are considered overnight and continuous. The risk of borrower default will be borne by the fund’s agent; the fund will bear the risk of loss with respect to the investment of the cash collateral. Income from securities lending, net of expenses, is included in investment income on the Statement of operations. Cash collateral is invested in Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC, a limited liability company managed by an affiliate of Putnam Management. Investments in Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC are valued at its closing net asset value each business day. There are no management fees charged to Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC. At the close of the reporting period, the fund received cash collateral of $5,251,990 and the value of securities loaned amounted to $5,144,887.

Interfund lending The fund, along with other Putnam funds, may participate in an interfund lending program pursuant to an exemptive order issued by the SEC. This program allows the fund to borrow from or lend to other Putnam funds that permit such transactions. Interfund lending transactions are subject to each fund’s investment policies and borrowing and lending limits. Interest earned or paid on the interfund lending transaction will be based on the average of certain current market rates. During the reporting period, the fund did not utilize the program.

Lines of credit The fund participates, along with other Putnam funds, in a $100 million ($317.5 million prior to October 14, 2022) unsecured committed line of credit and a $235.5 million unsecured uncommitted line of credit, both provided by State Street. Borrowings may be made for temporary or emergency purposes, including the funding of shareholder redemption requests and trade settlements. Interest is charged to the fund based on the fund’s borrowing at a rate equal to 1.25% plus the higher of (1) the Federal Funds rate and (2) the Overnight Bank Funding Rate for the committed line of credit and 1.30% plus the higher of (1) the Federal Funds rate and (2) the Overnight Bank Funding Rate for the uncommitted line of credit. A closing fee equal to 0.04% of the committed line of credit and 0.04% of the uncommitted line of credit has been paid by the participating funds. In addition, a commitment fee of 0.21% per annum on any unutilized portion of the committed line of credit is allocated to the participating funds based on their relative net assets and paid quarterly. During the reporting period, the fund had no borrowings against these arrangements.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 37

Federal taxes It is the policy of the fund to distribute all of its taxable income within the prescribed time period and otherwise comply with the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code), applicable to regulated investment companies. It is also the intention of the fund to distribute an amount sufficient to avoid imposition of any excise tax under Section 4982 of the Code.

The fund is subject to the provisions of Accounting Standards Codification 740 Income Taxes (ASC 740). ASC 740 sets forth a minimum threshold for financial statement recognition of the benefit of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. The fund did not have a liability to record for any unrecognized tax benefits in the accompanying financial statements. No provision has been made for federal taxes on income, capital gains or unrealized appreciation on securities held nor for excise tax on income and capital gains. Each of the fund’s federal tax returns for the prior three fiscal years remains subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service.

The fund may also be subject to taxes imposed by governments of countries in which it invests. Such taxes are generally based on either income or gains earned or repatriated. The fund accrues and applies such taxes to net investment income, net realized gains and net unrealized gains as income and/or capital gains are earned. In some cases, the fund may be entitled to reclaim all or a portion of such taxes, and such reclaim amounts, if any, are reflected as an asset on the fund’s books. In many cases, however, the fund may not receive such amounts for an extended period of time, depending on the country of investment.

Under the Regulated Investment Company Modernization Act of 2010, the fund will be permitted to carry forward capital losses incurred for an unlimited period and the carry forwards will retain their character as either short-term or long-term capital losses. At August 31, 2022, the fund had the following capital loss carryovers available, to the extent allowed by the Code, to offset future net capital gain, if any:


	Loss carryover
Short-term	Long-term	Total
$63,400,413	$5,517,919	$68,918,332

Pursuant to federal income tax regulations applicable to regulated investment companies, the fund has elected to defer $685,407 to its fiscal year ending August 31, 2023 of late year ordinary losses ((i) ordinary losses recognized between January 1, 2022 and August 31, 2022, and (ii) specified ordinary and currency losses recognized between November 1, 2021 and August 31, 2022).

Distributions to shareholders Distributions to shareholders from net investment income are recorded by the fund on the ex-dividend date. Distributions from capital gains, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend date and paid at least annually. The amount and character of income and gains to be distributed are determined in accordance with income tax regulations, which may differ from generally accepted accounting principles. These differences include temporary and/or permanent differences from losses on wash sale transactions, from foreign currency gains and losses, from foreign taxes paid on capital gains and from a redesignation of taxable distributions. Reclassifications are made to the fund’s capital accounts to reflect income and gains available for distribution (or available capital loss carryovers) under income tax regulations. At the close of the reporting period, the fund reclassified $2,783,796 to decrease undistributed net investment income and $2,783,796 to decrease accumulated net realized loss.

Tax cost of investments includes adjustments to net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) which may not necessarily be final tax cost basis adjustments, but closely approximate the tax basis unrealized gains and losses that may be realized and distributed to shareholders. The tax basis components of distributable earnings and the federal tax cost as of the close of the reporting period were as follows:


Unrealized appreciation	$31,399,062
Unrealized depreciation	(38,940,453)
Net unrealized depreciation	(7,541,391)
Capital loss carryforward	(68,918,332)
Late year ordinary loss deferral	(685,407)
Cost for federal income tax purposes	$388,609,269

38 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Expenses of the Trust Expenses directly charged or attributable to any fund will be paid from the assets of that fund. Generally, expenses of the Trust will be allocated among and charged to the assets of each fund on a basis that the Trustees deem fair and equitable, which may be based on the relative assets of each fund or the nature of the services performed and relative applicability to each fund.

Note 2: Management fee, administrative services and other transactions

The fund pays Putnam Management a management fee (base fee) (based on the fund’s average net assets and computed and paid monthly) at annual rates that may vary based on the average of the aggregate net assets of all open-end mutual funds sponsored by Putnam Management (excluding net assets of funds that are invested in, or that are invested in by, other Putnam funds to the extent necessary to avoid “double counting” of those assets). Such annual rates may vary as follows:


1.080%	of the first $5 billion,	0.880%	of the next $50 billion,
1.030%	of the next $5 billion,	0.860%	of the next $50 billion,
0.980%	of the next $10 billion,	0.850%	of the next $100 billion and
0.930%	of the next $10 billion,	0.845%	of any excess thereafter.

In addition, the monthly management fee consists of the monthly base fee plus or minus a performance adjustment for the month. The performance adjustment is determined based on performance over the thirty-six month period then ended. Each month, the performance adjustment is calculated by multiplying the performance adjustment rate and the fund’s average net assets over the performance period and dividing the result by twelve. The resulting dollar amount is added to, or subtracted from the base fee for that month. The performance adjustment rate is equal to 0.03 multiplied by the difference between the fund’s annualized performance (measured by the fund’s class A shares) and the annualized performance of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (ND) each measured over the performance period. The maximum annualized performance adjustment rate is +/- 0.21%. The monthly base fee is determined based on the fund’s average net assets for the month, while the performance adjustment is determined based on the fund’s average net assets over the thirty-six month performance period. This means it is possible that, if the fund underperforms significantly over the performance period, and the fund’s assets have declined significantly over that period, the negative performance adjustment may exceed the base fee. In this event, Putnam Management would make a payment to the fund.

In connection with the merger of Putnam International Growth Fund (“acquired fund”) into the fund on May 18, 2020, the management contract was amended such that, after completion of the merger, the combined fund’s performance adjustment will be calculated based on the combined assets of the fund and the acquired fund for any portion of a performance period that is prior to the merger, unless the use of the combined assets results in a fee payable by the fund under the amended management contract that is higher than the management fee that would have been paid under the fund’s current management contract. Under those circumstances, Putnam Management has agreed to reduce its management fee to reflect the lower amount that would have been payable under the fund’s current fee schedule, which would only take into account the assets of the fund for the period prior to the closing of the mergers. As a result of these management contract changes, the fund’s shareholders may pay a lower management fee, but would never pay a higher management fee, under the amended management contract than they would have paid under the fund’s current management contract.

Because the performance adjustment is based on the fund’s performance relative to its applicable benchmark index, and not its absolute performance, the performance adjustment could increase Putnam Management’s fee even if the fund’s shares lose value during the performance period provided that the fund outperformed its benchmark index, and could decrease Putnam Management’s fee even if the fund’s shares increase in value during the performance period provided that the fund underperformed its benchmark index.

For the reporting period, the management fee represented an effective rate (excluding the impact of any expense waiver in effect) of 0.991% of the fund’s average net assets, which included an effective base fee of 0.914% and an increase of 0.077% ($383,680) based on performance.

Putnam Management has contractually agreed, through December 30, 2023, to waive fees and/or reimburse the fund’s expenses to the extent necessary to limit the cumulative expenses of the fund, exclusive of brokerage, interest, taxes, investment-related expenses, extraordinary expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses and payments under the fund’s investor servicing contract, investment management contract and distribution plans, on a fiscal year-to-date basis to an annual rate of 0.20% of the fund’s average net assets over such fiscal year-to-date period. During the reporting period, the fund’s expenses were not reduced as a result of this limit.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 39

Putnam Management has also contractually agreed to waive fees (and, to the extent necessary, bear other expenses) of the fund through December 30, 2023, to the extent that total expenses of the fund (before any applicable performance-based adjustment to the fund’s base management fee and excluding brokerage, interest, taxes, investment-related expenses, payments under distribution plans, extraordinary expenses, payments under the fund’s investor servicing contract and acquired fund fees and expenses, but including payments under the fund’s investment management contract) would exceed an annual rate of 0.78% of the fund’s average net assets. During the reporting period, the fund’s expenses were reduced by $1,459,482 as a result of this limit.

Putnam Investments Limited (PIL), an affiliate of Putnam Management, is authorized by the Trustees to manage a separate portion of the assets of the fund as determined by Putnam Management from time to time. PIL did not manage any portion of the assets of the fund during the reporting period. If Putnam Management were to engage the services of PIL, Putnam Management would pay a quarterly sub-management fee to PIL for its services at an annual rate of 0.25% (prior to July 1, 2022, the annual rate was 0.35%) of the average net assets of the portion of the fund managed by PIL.

The Putnam Advisory Company, LLC (PAC), an affiliate of Putnam Management, is authorized by the Trustees to manage a separate portion of the assets of the fund, as designated from time to time by Putnam Management or PIL. PAC did not manage any portion of the assets of the fund during the reporting period. If Putnam Management or PIL were to engage the services of PAC, Putnam Management or PIL, as applicable, would pay a quarterly sub-advisory fee to PAC for its services at the annual rate of 0.25% (prior to July 1, 2022, the annual rate was 0.35%) of the average net assets of the portion of the fund’s assets for which PAC is engaged as sub-adviser.

The fund reimburses Putnam Management an allocated amount for the compensation and related expenses of certain officers of the fund and their staff who provide administrative services to the fund. The aggregate amount of all such reimbursements is determined annually by the Trustees.

Custodial functions for the fund’s assets are provided by State Street. Custody fees are based on the fund’s asset level, the number of its security holdings and transaction volumes.

Putnam Investor Services, Inc., an affiliate of Putnam Management, provides investor servicing agent functions to the fund. Putnam Investor Services, Inc. received fees for investor servicing for class A, class B, class C, class R and class Y shares that included (1) a per account fee for each direct and underlying non-defined contribution account (retail account) of the fund; (2) a specified rate of the fund’s assets attributable to defined contribution plan accounts; and (3) a specified rate based on the average net assets in retail accounts. Putnam Investor Services, Inc. has agreed that the aggregate investor servicing fees for each fund’s retail and defined contribution accounts for these share classes will not exceed an annual rate of 0.25% of the fund’s average assets attributable to such accounts.

Class R6 shares paid a monthly fee based on the average net assets of class R6 shares at an annual rate of 0.05%.

During the reporting period, the expenses for each class of shares related to investor servicing fees were as follows:


Class A	$540,681	Class R6	16,749
Class B	4,155	Class Y	418,212
Class C	21,266	Total	$1,012,649
Class R	11,586

The fund has entered into expense offset arrangements with Putnam Investor Services, Inc. and State Street whereby Putnam Investor Services, Inc.’s and State Street’s fees are reduced by credits allowed on cash balances. For the reporting period, the fund’s expenses were reduced by $613 under the expense offset arrangements.

Each Independent Trustee of the fund receives an annual Trustee fee, of which $337, as a quarterly retainer, has been allocated to the fund, and an additional fee for each Trustees meeting attended. Trustees also are reimbursed for expenses they incur relating to their services as Trustees.

40 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

The fund has adopted a Trustee Fee Deferral Plan (the Deferral Plan) which allows the Trustees to defer the receipt of all or a portion of Trustees fees payable on or after July 1, 1995. The deferred fees remain invested in certain Putnam funds until distribution in accordance with the Deferral Plan.

The fund has adopted an unfunded noncontributory defined benefit pension plan (the Pension Plan) covering all Trustees of the fund who have served as a Trustee for at least five years and were first elected prior to 2004. Benefits under the Pension Plan are equal to 50% of the Trustee’s average annual attendance and retainer fees for the three years ended December 31, 2005. The retirement benefit is payable during a Trustee’s lifetime, beginning the year following retirement, for the number of years of service through December 31, 2006. Pension expense for the fund is included in Trustee compensation and expenses in the Statement of operations. Accrued pension liability is included in Payable for Trustee compensation and expenses in the Statement of assets and liabilities. The Trustees have terminated the Pension Plan with respect to any Trustee first elected after 2003.

The fund has adopted distribution plans (the Plans) with respect to the following share classes pursuant to Rule 12b–1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The purpose of the Plans is to compensate Putnam Retail Management Limited Partnership, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Putnam Investments, LLC, for services provided and expenses incurred in distributing shares of the fund. The Plans provide payments by the fund to Putnam Retail Management Limited Partnership at an annual rate of up to the following amounts (Maximum %) of the average net assets attributable to each class. The Trustees have approved payment by the fund at the following annual rate (Approved %) of the average net assets attributable to each class. During the reporting period, the class-specific expenses related to distribution fees were as follows:


	Maximum %	Approved %	Amount
Class A	0.35%	0.25%	$627,297
Class B	1.00%	1.00%	19,466
Class C	1.00%	1.00%	99,152
Class R	1.00%	0.50%	26,822
Total			$772,737

For the reporting period, Putnam Retail Management Limited Partnership, acting as underwriter, received net commissions of $20,600 from the sale of class A shares and received $55 and $61 in contingent deferred sales charges from redemptions of class B and class C shares, respectively.

A deferred sales charge of up to 1.00% is assessed on certain redemptions of class A shares. For the reporting period, Putnam Retail Management Limited Partnership, acting as underwriter, received $99 on class A redemptions.

Note 3: Purchases and sales of securities

During the reporting period, the cost of purchases and the proceeds from sales, excluding short-term investments, were as follows:


	Cost of purchases	Proceeds from sales
Investments in securities (Long-term)	$629,864,544	$707,162,624
U.S. government securities (Long-term)	—	—
Total	$629,864,544	$707,162,624

The fund may purchase or sell investments from or to other Putnam funds in the ordinary course of business, which can reduce the fund’s transaction costs, at prices determined in accordance with SEC requirements and policies approved by the Trustees. During the reporting period, purchases or sales of long-term securities from or to other Putnam funds, if any, did not represent more than 5% of the fund’s total cost of purchases and/or total proceeds from sales.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 41

Note 4: Capital shares

At the close of the reporting period, there were an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest authorized. Transactions, including, if applicable, direct exchanges pursuant to share conversions, in capital shares were as follows:


	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class A	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	1,258,435	$17,433,752	2,198,690	$37,323,590
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	921,455	13,821,819	295,157	4,837,395
	2,179,890	31,255,571	2,493,847	42,160,985
Shares repurchased	(2,940,252)	(41,411,921)	(2,607,785)	(43,589,105)
Net decrease	(760,362)	$(10,156,350)	(113,938)	$(1,428,120)

	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class B	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	120	$1,822	14,472	$232,575
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	8,914	125,508	3,698	57,509
	9,034	127,330	18,170	290,084
Shares repurchased	(76,387)	(1,033,582)	(84,752)	(1,346,579)
Net decrease	(67,353)	$(906,252)	(66,582)	$(1,056,495)

	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class C	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	84,220	$1,144,148	282,772	$4,587,681
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	44,515	622,763	13,938	215,482
	128,735	1,766,911	296,710	4,803,163
Shares repurchased	(285,337)	(3,806,631)	(299,457)	(4,768,328)
Net increase (decrease)	(156,602)	$(2,039,720)	(2,747)	$34,835

	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class R	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	84,628	$1,159,465	408,566	$6,411,265
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	20,445	304,229	6,527	106,451
	105,073	1,463,694	415,093	6,517,716
Shares repurchased	(75,968)	(1,055,025)	(116,909)	(1,960,470)
Net increase	29,105	$408,669	298,184	$4,557,246

	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class R6	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	561,880	$7,822,008	1,301,967	$22,715,478
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	123,758	1,889,786	31,356	520,815
	685,638	9,711,794	1,333,323	23,236,293
Shares repurchased	(664,658)	(9,651,094)	(495,468)	(8,442,369)
Net increase	20,980	$60,700	837,855	$14,793,924

42 Emerging Markets Equity Fund


	YEAR ENDED 8/31/22		YEAR ENDED 8/31/21
Class Y	Shares	Amount	Shares	Amount
Shares sold	9,695,017	$138,513,328	14,120,366	$245,675,953
Shares issued in connection with
reinvestment of distributions	723,385	11,017,149	135,170	2,242,478
	10,418,402	149,530,477	14,255,536	247,918,431
Shares repurchased	(12,915,527)	(182,916,950)	(5,332,589)	(91,296,616)
Net increase (decrease)	(2,497,125)	$(33,386,473)	8,922,947	$156,621,815

Note 5: Affiliated transactions

Transactions during the reporting period with any company which is under common ownership or control were as follows:


					Shares
					outstanding
					and fair
	Fair value as	Purchase	Sale	Investment	value as
Name of affiliate	of 8/31/21	cost	proceeds	income	of 8/31/22
Short-term investments
Putnam Cash Collateral
Pool, LLC^*	$40,869,480	$143,943,779	$179,561,269	$45,297	$5,251,990
Putnam Short Term
Investment Fund^**	4,668,188	223,206,298	223,423,345	19,632	4,451,141
Total Short-term
investments	$45,537,668	$367,150,077	$402,984,614	$64,929	$9,703,131

^*No management fees are charged to Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC (Note 1). Investment income shown is included in securities lending income on the Statement of operations. There were no realized or unrealized gains or losses during the period.

^**Management fees charged to Putnam Short Term Investment Fund have been waived by Putnam Management. There were no realized or unrealized gains or losses during the period.

Note 6: Market, credit and other risks

In the normal course of business, the fund trades financial instruments and enters into financial transactions where risk of potential loss exists due to changes in the market (market risk) or failure of the contracting party to the transaction to perform (credit risk). The fund may be exposed to additional credit risk that an institution or other entity with which the fund has unsettled or open transactions will default. Investments in foreign securities involve certain risks, including those related to economic instability, unfavorable political developments, and currency fluctuations.

Beginning in January 2020, global financial markets have experienced, and may continue to experience, significant volatility resulting from the spread of a virus known as Covid–19. The outbreak of Covid–19 has resulted in travel and border restrictions, quarantines, supply chain disruptions, lower consumer demand, and general market uncertainty. The effects of Covid–19 have adversely affected, and may continue to adversely affect, the global economy, the economies of certain nations, and individual issuers, all of which may negatively impact the fund’s performance.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 43

Federal tax information (Unaudited)

For the reporting period, total interest and dividend income from foreign countries were $9,159,764, or $0.28 per share (for all classes of shares). Taxes paid to foreign countries were $3,224,125, or $0.10 per share (for all classes of shares).

For the reporting period, the fund hereby designates 100%, or the maximum amount allowable, of its taxable ordinary income distributions as qualified dividends taxed at the individual net capital gain rates.

For the reporting period, pursuant to §871(k) of the Internal Revenue Code, the fund hereby designates no monies of distributions paid as qualifying to be taxed as interest-related dividends, and $14,128,151 to be taxed as short-term capital gain dividends for nonresident alien shareholders.

The Form 1099 that will be mailed to you in January 2023 will show the tax status of all distributions paid to your account in calendar 2022.

44 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Shareholder meeting results (Unaudited)

June 29, 2022 special meeting

At the meeting, each of the nominees for Trustees was elected, with all funds of the Trust voting together as a single class, as follows:


	Votes for	Votes withheld
Liaquat Ahamed	3,583,882,479	32,417,735
Barbara M. Baumann	3,584,377,892	31,922,322
Katinka Domotorffy	3,584,956,517	31,343,697
Catharine Bond Hill	3,586,682,827	29,617,387
Kenneth R. Leibler	3,569,431,371	46,868,843
Jennifer Williams Murphy	3,581,263,937	35,036,277
Marie Pillai	3,578,125,932	38,174,282
George Putnam, III	3,576,315,198	39,985,016
Robert L. Reynolds	3,579,411,077	36,889,137
Manoj P. Singh	3,582,573,738	33,726,476
Mona K. Sutphen	3,588,302,923	27,997,291

September 29, 2022 special meeting

A proposal to change the fund’s sub-classification under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, from “diversified” to “non-diversified” was approved as follows:


Votes for	Votes against	Abstentions	Broker non-votes
13,146,623	537,088	670,879	5,224,153

All tabulations are rounded to the nearest whole number.

Emerging Markets Equity Fund 45

Officers

In addition to Robert L. Reynolds, the other officers of the fund are shown below:


James F. Clark (Born 1974)	Alan G. McCormack (Born 1964)
Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer	Vice President and Derivatives Risk Manager
Since 2016	Since 2022
Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Risk Officer,	Head of Quantitative Equities and Risk,
Putnam Investments, and Chief Compliance Officer,	Putnam Investments
Putnam Management
	Denere P. Poulack (Born 1968)
Nancy E. Florek (Born 1957)	Assistant Vice President, Assistant Clerk,
Vice President, Director of Proxy Voting and Corporate	and Assistant Treasurer
Governance, Assistant Clerk, and Assistant Treasurer	Since 2004
Since 2000
	Janet C. Smith (Born 1965)
Michael J. Higgins (Born 1976)	Vice President, Principal Financial Officer, Principal
Vice President, Treasurer, and Clerk	Accounting Officer, and Assistant Treasurer
Since 2010	Since 2007
	Head of Fund Administration Services,
Jonathan S. Horwitz (Born 1955)	Putnam Investments and Putnam Management
Executive Vice President, Principal Executive Officer,
and Compliance Liaison	Stephen J. Tate (Born 1974)
Since 2004	Vice President and Chief Legal Officer
	Since 2021
Richard T. Kircher (Born 1962)	General Counsel, Putnam Investments,
Vice President and BSA Compliance Officer	Putnam Management, and Putnam Retail Management
Since 2019
Assistant Director, Operational Compliance, Putnam	Mark C. Trenchard (Born 1962)
Investments and Putnam Retail Management	Vice President
	Since 2002
Martin Lemaire (Born 1984)	Director of Operational Compliance, Putnam
Vice President and Derivatives Risk Manager	Investments and Putnam Retail Management
Since 2022
Risk Manager and Risk Analyst, Putnam Investments

Susan G. Malloy (Born 1957)
Vice President and Assistant Treasurer
Since 2007
Head of Accounting and Middle Office Services,
Putnam Investments and Putnam Management

The principal occupations of the officers for the past five years have been with the employers as shown above, although in some cases they have held different positions with such employers. The address of each officer is 100 Federal Street, Boston, MA 02110.

48 Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Fund information

Founded over 80 years ago, Putnam Investments was built around the concept that a balance between risk and reward is the hallmark of a well-rounded financial program. We manage funds across income, value, blend, growth, sustainable, asset allocation, absolute return, and global sector categories.


Investment Manager	Trustees	Richard T. Kircher
Putnam Investment	Kenneth R. Leibler, Chair	Vice President and
Management, LLC	Barbara M. Baumann, Vice Chair	BSA Compliance Officer
100 Federal Street	Liaquat Ahamed
Boston, MA 02110	Katinka Domotorffy	Martin Lemaire
	Catharine Bond Hill	Vice President and
Investment Sub-Advisors	Jennifer Williams Murphy	Derivatives Risk Manager
Putnam Investments Limited	Marie Pillai
16 St James’s Street	George Putnam, III	Susan G. Malloy
London, England SW1A 1ER	Robert L. Reynolds	Vice President and
	Manoj P. Singh	Assistant Treasurer
The Putnam Advisory Company, LLC	Mona K. Sutphen
100 Federal Street		Alan G. McCormack
Boston, MA 02110	Officers	Vice President and
	Robert L. Reynolds	Derivatives Risk Manager
Marketing Services	President
Putnam Retail Management		Denere P. Poulack
Limited Partnership	James F. Clark	Assistant Vice President,
100 Federal Street	Vice President, Chief Compliance	Assistant Clerk, and
Boston, MA 02110	Officer, and Chief Risk Officer	Assistant Treasurer

Custodian	Nancy E. Florek	Janet C. Smith
State Street Bank	Vice President, Director of	Vice President,
and Trust Company	Proxy Voting and Corporate	Principal Financial Officer,
	Governance, Assistant Clerk,	Principal Accounting Officer,
Legal Counsel	and Assistant Treasurer	and Assistant Treasurer
Ropes & Gray LLP
	Michael J. Higgins	Stephen J. Tate
Independent Registered	Vice President, Treasurer,	Vice President and
Public Accounting Firm	and Clerk	Chief Legal Officer
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
	Jonathan S. Horwitz	Mark C. Trenchard
	Executive Vice President,	Vice President
	Principal Executive Officer,
	and Compliance Liaison

This report is for the information of shareholders of Putnam Emerging Markets Equity Fund. It may also be used as sales literature when preceded or accompanied by the current prospectus, the most recent copy of Putnam’s Quarterly Performance Summary, and Putnam’s Quarterly Ranking Summary. For more recent performance, please visit putnam.com. Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of a fund, which are described in its prospectus. For this and other information or to request a prospectus or summary prospectus, call 1-800-225-1581 toll free. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing. The fund’s Statement of Additional Information contains additional information about the fund’s Trustees and is available without charge upon request by calling 1-800-225-1581.


Fiscal year ended	Audit Fees	Audit-Related Fees	Tax Fees	All Other Fees


August 31, 2022	$57,683	$ —	$23,062	$ —
August 31, 2021	$51,217	$ —	$22,195	$ —


Fiscal year ended	Audit-Related Fees	Tax Fees	All Other Fees	Total Non-Audit Fees

August 31, 2022	$ —	$298,283	$ —	$ —
August 31, 2021	$ —	$264,899	$ —	$ —


	CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES


	Exact name of registrant as specified in charter:	Putnam Funds Trust


	Address of principal executive offices:	100 Federal Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02110


	Name and address of agent for service:	Stephen Tate, Vice President 100 Federal Street Boston, Massachusetts 02110


	Copy to:	Bryan Chegwidden, Esq. Ropes & Gray LLP 1211 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York 10036


	Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:	(617) 292-1000


	Date of reporting period:	September 1, 2021 – August 31, 2022


	The following is a copy of the report transmitted to stockholders pursuant to Rule 30e-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940:


Message from the Trustees	1
Interview with your fund’s portfolio manager	3
Your fund’s performance	7
Your fund’s expenses	10
Consider these risks before investing	12
Terms and definitions	13
Other information for shareholders	15
Important notice regarding Putnam’s privacy policy	16
Trustee approval of management contract	17
Audited financial statements	22
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm	23
Federal tax information	44
Shareholder meeting results	45
About the Trustees	46
Officers	48


	The following table presents fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for services rendered to the fund by the fund’s independent auditor:


	UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION


	Washington, D.C. 20549


	FORM N-CSR


	Item 1. Report to Stockholders:


	For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2022 and August 31, 2021, the fund’s independent auditor billed aggregate non-audit fees in the amounts of $321,345 and $287,094 respectively, to the fund, Putnam Management and any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with Putnam Management that provides ongoing services to the fund.


	Audit Fees represent fees billed for the fund’s last two fiscal years relating to the audit and review of the financial statements included in annual reports and registration statements, and other services that are normally provided in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements.


	Audit-Related Fees represent fees billed in the fund’s last two fiscal years for services traditionally performed by the fund’s auditor, including accounting consultation for proposed transactions or concerning financial accounting and reporting standards and other audit or attest services not required by statute or regulation.


	Tax Fees represent fees billed in the fund’s last two fiscal years for tax compliance, tax planning and tax advice services. Tax planning and tax advice services include assistance with tax audits, employee benefit plans and requests for rulings or technical advice from taxing authorities.


	Pre-Approval Policies of the Audit, Compliance and Risk Committee. The Audit, Compliance and Risk Committee of the Putnam funds has determined that, as a matter of policy, all work performed for the funds by the funds’ independent auditors will be pre-approved by the Committee itself and thus will generally not be subject to pre-approval procedures.


	The registrant’s schedule of investments in unaffiliated issuers is included in the report to shareholders in Item 1 above.


	Item 7. Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures For Closed-End Management Investment Companies:


	Item 8. Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Investment Companies


	Item 9. Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Companies and Affiliated Purchasers:


	Item 10. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders:


	(b) Changes in internal control over financial reporting: Not applicable


	Item 12. Disclosures of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies:


	(a)(1) The Code of Ethics of The Putnam Funds, which incorporates the Code of Ethics of Putnam Investments, is filed herewith


	(a)(2) Separate certifications for the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the registrant as required by Rule 30a-2(a) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, are filed herewith.


	(b) The certifications required by Rule 30a-2(b) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, are filed herewith.


	Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.


	/s/ Janet C. Smith Janet C. Smith Principal Accounting Officer


	/s/ Jonathan S. Horwitz Jonathan S. Horwitz Principal Executive Officer