There has been a lot of media coverage lately of the G8 Summit. But many people don’t know what it is or how it originated. About 30 years ago a handful of countries got together to talk about the world economy and they called themselves the G7. These were very informal meetings attended by finance ministers who addressed issues such as currencies and exchange rates. There was a lot of confusion, and countries were concerned with stabilizing world currencies. It got very little coverage until the 90’s, when Russia was added to the mix. More heads of state showed up and the meeting was renamed G8. But only in the last six to eight years has this summit become more political. So, what’s in the future for the G8 Summit? Well, probably the G9. Communist China has such power that it seems unrealistic to leave them out of worldly meetings. But, from a consumer’s point of view, the G8 Summit has no effect on your wallet.