Prospectus Supplement                                             216803 07/04

dated July 27, 2004 to:
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PUTNAM EUROPE EQUITY FUND
PUTNAM INTERNATIONAL EQUITY FUND (each a "fund")

Prospectuses dated October 30, 2003

Effective July 27, 2004, the following paragraphs are inserted after the
first paragraph under the heading "Who manages the fund?":

Putnam Management has retained its affiliate, Putnam Investments Limited
("PIL"), to manage a separate portion of the assets of the fund. Subject
to the supervision of Putnam Management, PIL is responsible for making
investment decisions for the portion of the assets of the fund that it
manages.

PIL provides a full range of international investment advisory services
to institutional and retail clients.

Putnam Management (and not the fund) pays a quarterly sub-management fee
to PIL for its services at the annual rate of 0.35% of the average
aggregate net asset value of the portion of the assets of the fund
managed by PIL. PIL's address is Cassini House, 57-59 St James's Street,
London, England, SW1A 1LD.

The first sentence of the second paragraph under the heading "Who
manages the fund?" is revised as follows:

Putnam Management's and PIL's investment professionals are organized
into investment management teams, with a particular team dedicated to a
specific asset class.