Russia: Stable but Critical

As Americans ponder the merits of Obama vs. Gingrich, Paul, Romney or Santorum, Russia will be electing its own president on March 4. Perhaps we should say “re-electing” since it’s almost certain former president and current prime minster Vladimir Putin will be elected.

That's the title of a piece my colleague Andrew Reschovsky has in the Fall La Follette Policy Report. With the admission of failure by the Supercommittee, it's important to recall the basic choices facing the Nation. In principle, solving the nation’s debt problems is easy. Almost all experts agree that a combination of reduced spending and increased tax revenues is needed.

John Wooden — the late, great UCLA basketball coach — once said, “Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.” With coach Wooden’s advice in mind, let’s think positive. Let’s review the upside of the resource news flow. Hey, oil prices are stable. The Brent crude oil price is hovering in the low $100 range, while North American oil prices — embodied in the price for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) — are $10 less, give or take. Of course, OPEC oil exporters hate $100 oil…

For some Eastern European investors, the geographic proximity to the eurozone has been too close for comfort, with the Russian MICEX Index declining about 20 percent year-to-date. However, stronger fiscal and monetary stances in Eastern Europe compared with its western neighbors warrant a second look.

Article written by Prieur du Plessis, editor of the Investment Postcards from Cape Town blog.This post is a guest contribution by Jacob Nell of Morgan Stanley.

Article written by Prieur du Plessis, editor of the Investment Postcards from Cape Town blog.This post is a guest contribution by Jacob Nell of Morgan Stanley.