Many investors will want to avoid Russia right now. And they’ll definitely want to avoid Georgia.
But, as you’ll see below, now could actually be the perfect time to invest in both of these countries.
Let’s take Russia first. The Georgian conflict helped wipe 6.5% off Russia’s stock market on Friday. It is the latest in a string of events that have damaged investor confidence recently.
One of these is the interminable TNK-BP saga. BP and a group of Russian oligarchs each own half the venture. The Russians have made life difficult for TNK-BP’s foreign employees. Visas have been refused. Chief executive Robert Dudley has quit the country. His finance director has resigned.
Understandably, this has spooked foreign investors.
There was also Vladimir Putin’s comment about Mechel, the Russian coal and steel firm. In June, Putin denounced the firm’s pricing policy, and accused it of tax evasion. His comments helped wipe $60 billion off the stock market.
And now, of course, there is a war. So you’d expect us to advise investors to stay the hell away, right?
Wrong!
"Buy when you hear the gunfire" is a commonly-heard phrase in investment circles. When everyone else is panicking, cool heads can set themselves up for spectacular gains.
My colleague Manraaj Singh looks for investments where most others fear to tread. As it happens, his Profit Hunter service has previous in Georgia. Last year, Manraaj’s readers made a tidy profit on one Georgian investment.
As I write this, Manraaj is tucked away in his cubbyhole looking for a way to get back in!
Is he mad? See for yourself tomorrow when Manraaj reveals his latest thoughts on this prospective play.
Meanwhile, Garry White takes a look at Russia. He gives us the top five reasons why he likes the place — and tells you
how you could get rich the Putin way... Finding profits in an unpopular place "Naturally, when people think of the Congo today, they remember the violence... the wars... the corruption... the extreme poverty," writes Manraaj Singh in his latest investment report.
But, as Manraaj points out, it’s also one of the most mineral-rich places on earth. It is another example of a place most investors are scared by — much to their detriment.
Manraaj has found a unique mining company that could soon control nearly half the world supply of one critical metal.
"Investors are nervous because it operates in the Congo," says Manraaj. "So its share price is still trading well below what it’s really worth."
To make real money, you often have to completely ignore mainstream advice. If everyone knows about it, the opportunity has passed.
Manraaj’s latest report offers you the chance to buy against the grain. Read on to
find out how much this one share could make you Until tomorrow
Ben Traynor
Editor
The Daily Reckoning — Painting the shutters We are on vacation.
And so is the rest of France. The little church was crowded yesterday, mostly with Parisians and their children. It was also the 50th wedding anniversary for a friend...a retired army colonel and his wife. But the occasion was marked by more sadness than joy. Only three weeks ago, one of their sons was killed in a traffic accident. We felt so sorry for him...we didn’t know what to say. We wished he could worry about the stock market...or the monetary system...or the war in South Ossetia — but it was all no more than the buzzing of a fly compared to the loss of a child. We were meant to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary; but who could offer more than empty words...?
"Oui, mon vieux...yes, my poor old fellow..." was all we could say. We hugged him and said nothing more.
Yes, we are on vacation...but this is the Daily Reckoning, after all. And there are always things to be reckoned with. Some important. Some trivial. Some sacred. Some profane.
You can read the Daily Reckoning in full here.
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