Huge Currency Moves Will Cause Trouble

We have got huge currency moves all over the world. The Japanese Yen is down over 50 percent in 2 years. The Euro Currency has collapsed, the Canadian Dollar, the Australian Dollar, the Ruble is certainly one the big ones.

We are going to have some more big dislocations in the world economy because when major currencies, the Japanese Yen for instance is one of the most important currencies in the world, when you have these dislocations, somebody is on the wrong side of the trade. I don`t know who they are obviously, but somebody is long and somebody is short. And the people that are long currencies, when huge moves like these take place, are in trouble.

If you owe a lot of U.S. Dollars for instance, you are suffering right now, wether you are in Japan, in Russia, in Venezuela, wherever you happen to be.

Can Russia Diversify From Oil?

Russia can. Russia has vast alternative assets. They have got huge agriculture prospects, metals, minerals. Look at the map. You will see they have just about everything and they probably have things they don`t even know about yet.

You look at Venezuela, or Iran, or Mexico. It is much, much more difficult for them to switch quickly from oil to something else. But even for Russia, you do not do this overnight. Yes, Russia can change.  Will they do it quickly? Of course not. It takes a long time.

Related exchange traded fund: Market Vector Russia ETF Trust (RSX)

Looking For Russian Stocks To Buy

I am looking for Russian stocks to buy as this happens. For instance, I am a director of a large Russian fertilizer company, one of the largest in the world. They sell in U.S. Dollars, their expenses are in Rubles. This helps people like that. Now, there are not many people in Russian that particular circumstance.s but if you find companies like that, that are selling their products in U.S. Dollars and their expenses are in Rubles, my Godness! This is a bonanza for them.

I am looking at companies that are not oil related because there are plenty of ways to invest in oil but trying to find companies such as PhosAgro, which is the company I have become a director, which have these particular circumstances.

Related stocks: PhosAgro OAO(MCX:PHOR)

Related ETFs: Market Vector Russia ETF Trust (RSX)

Ruble Collapse: The Central Bank Is Doing The Right Things

Most governments do panic and try to do things that make the situation worse. I am very favorably impressed with the Russian Central Bank. They are letting the market do it, they are not bringing exchange controls, they are doing exactly the right thing.

Related trading instruments: Russian Ruble, Market Vector Russia ETF Trust (RSX)

Currencies: Russian Ruble Collapse

Topics: Discussing the Russian Ruble collapse

Related trading: Russian Ruble, Euro Currency, U.S. Dollar

Countries To Invest Around The World

I own shares in Ghana but Ghana had many periods of disaster. It has been less badly run than some of the others but when I think of countries to invest around the world, Ghana is not the first that pops to mind. Much more of my effort is in Asia than is in Ghana or Africa.

Macro Views: Latin America

Latin America historically should be a land of great opportunity. All those countries in latin Maerica have huge natural resources, weather, population, etc. Unfortunately most of them have been badly managed. For the most part of the last 400 years.  I am not sure why they`ve been so badly managed. You look at Venezuela...no country in the world has better opportunities, and they keep messing it up over and over again.

Argentina the same way. 125 years ago, people in Europe deciding to emigrate, the choice was either the U.S. or Argentina. Many of them went to Argentina. Argentina has gone straight to hell since 125 years ago. So many of these Latin America countries have great opportunities, great assets, unfortunately they have not run them very well for most of the time. That usually leads to opportunities because when there is a disaster, if nothing else, things are going to get better for a while.

Related exchange traded funds: iShares MSCI Brazil Index ETF (EWZ),  iShares S&P Latin America 40 Index ETF (ILF)