Russian Market Surges 71 Money and Markets Explains Why



Why did Russia'ss stock market surge 71% Last Year and how can U.S. investors profit from this trend
Even after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia is still the world'ss largest country spanning 11 time zones twice the size of the United States but with just half the population. That translates into vast, virtually unlimited, oft-untapped natural resources. By 2005, GDP was growing by 6.4 percent annually -- the seventh consecutive year of strong growth. And in 2006, it was nearly 6.9 percent.

According to Dr. Martin Weiss, The Russian domestic economy has grown each of the past eight years. Household incomes grew 11.5% for the year, hitting 7.411.8 trillion rubles. The official poverty rate declined from 17.8% in 2004 to 15.8% in 2005. And the Russian stock market was up 71% in 2006.

Here are three contributing factors:
Reason #1
Russia is the World'ss Second Largest Exporter Of Energy, Surpassed Only by Saudi Arabia. Russia has a whopping 13 percent of all global oil and gas reserves in the world -- including 60 billion barrels of oil valued at $15 trillion. Russia also holds the world'ss largest natural gas reserves, the second largest coal reserves, and the eighth largest oil reserves.

Reason #2
Russia'ss Economy Is Part of A Transition, Not a Permanent Fixture. International investors are using this transitional period of capitalism as their window -- to jump in and buy Russian assets for pennies on the dollar. That'ss probably why Russia saw more than $13.1 billion in foreign direct investment pour into the country last year -- more than three times as much as in 2002, according to the World Bank. And that'ss also probably why Russia has experienced double-digit growth in fixed capital investment for three years straight, now up to a healthy 18 percent of GDP.

Reason #3
Finances Improving Steadily. Russia'ss government is currently flush with cash. Its federal budget has a surplus. And in 2005, that surplus hit a record $57.2 billion, or 7.5 percent of GDP.

For investors that are interested in leveraging this powerful trend, Dr. Weiss recommends several ways to invest in Russia. You can buy U.S.-traded funds and stocks in virtually every major market, and Eastern Europe is no exception.

He adds, This doesn'st remove all the risk -- far from it. The more an investment soars, the more likely it is to also suffer periodic tailspins. So invest sparingly. And wait for sharp dips before buying.
For more information and to read the full article containing Russia-specific U.S.-traded funds and stocks, visit this link:
http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/press.aspcat_id=6

About Martin Weiss & MONEY AND MARKETS
Money and Markets (www.moneyandmarkets.com) is a free daily investment newsletter from Dr. Martin Weiss and Weiss Research analysts offering the latest investing news and financial insights for the stock market, including tips and advice on investing in gold, energy and oil. Weiss Research, Inc. is located in Jupiter, Florida. For more information about our editors, or to set up an interview, please contact Wendy Montes de Oca at 561-627-3300 or visit www.moneyandmarkets.com.





Russian Market Surges 71 Money and Markets Explains Why