Maybe socialism is not all that bad. Right now, the United States government effectively owns the nation’s major banks, mortgage lenders, and insurer. Even more, they just changed long-standing securities laws and financially backed the short-term cash market.

Washington’s action is making the heroes of a free-market economy scratch their skin off, but it is hard to deny the monumentally positive impact it is having on Wall Street. All major indices are through the roof this morning.

What will happen on Monday, next week, next year, or even next decade, nobody knows. The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve have re-written the world’s economic rules. Wall Street was forced to throw out its old textbooks. Now it must sit back and wait as we write a new one.

Today may be a great day on the Street. But absolutely nobody knows what impact all of these knee-jerk regulations will have on the global markets in the future.

Some cash for the weekend

With near-zero certainty in the markets, I am not willing to take any undue risks. Nearly all my recent equity picks are way into positive territory. You need to lock in the gains.

Mechel (NYSE:MTL) is up by nearly 25%. Vimpel Communications (NYSE:VIP) is up by nearly 35%. And Nortel (NYSE:NT) is up close to 10% since I recommended it. And do not forget my third Russian pick, Rostelecom (NYSE:ROS) that I recommended selling for gains of nearly 40% yesterday. These are sizeable gains in just a few days.

If you followed my advice and bought shares of these companies earlier this week, sell them all.

The equities market is in a great mood today. Monday could be an entirely different situation. By then, we could have new rules, new economic laws, and an entirely different sentiment on Wall Street. The potential gains are much smaller than the potential losses.

Take your money off the table and stay tuned. I will have the next round of winners online in no time.

Source: Lock in huge profits: Sell Mechel (MTL), Vimpel (VIP) and Nortel (NT)

This from Today’s Financial News:

Rostelecom (NYSE:ROS) is up by over 35% [on Thursday], handing investors that followed my advice 35%-plus gains in just one trading day. Time to take those gains off the table!

I just love a volatile market. For the folks willing to do their homework and do some research, a roller-coaster market can lead to big gains.

The Russian markets are in turmoil. With 80% of the country’s equities representing commodity-based companies, it is no surprise the markets plunged as the global economy entered an obvious slowdown phase. While the discounting of many of these companies was needed, there was no need to slash the prices of many other Russian companies.

On Wednesday, I wrote about three Russian companies with share prices that got hammered in the wake of the country’s stock market collapse. All three are strong firms that deserve much higher valuations. The proof is hitting the ticker tape today.

My pick Rostelecom (NYSE:ROS) is up by over 35%, handing investors that followed my advice huge one-day gains. In this here-today-gone-tomorrow trading world, it is best to take those gains off the table.

Sell your Rostelecom position.

You should hold onto the two other Russian investments I recommended, Mechel OAO (NYSE:MTL) and Vimpel Communications (NYSE:VIP). Both positions are well into positive territory and should continue to rise in value.

Source: Making Money as Markets Go Mad: Sell Rostelecom (ROS) for 35%+ Gains

Andrew Snyder says when an emerging market such as Russia sells off unexpectedly it opens up great buying opportunities.

Andrew recommends three stocks that have been dramatically oversold in the crash. They are Vimpel-Communications (NYSE:VIP), Rostelecom (NYSE:ROS) and Mechel OAO (NYSE:MTL).

This from Today’s Financial News:

Although American financial problems are dominating headlines today, Russia is having some serious problems of its own.

Yesterday, Moscow and the country’s Central Bank were forced to infuse $20 billion into the Russia’s top banks. Meanwhile, the country’s major equity exchange, the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange (MISEX), fell close to 20% in intraday trading, forcing officials to halt trading and close shop an hour earlier than normal.

Today the free fall continued, forcing Russia to raise its infusion to over $40 billion and halt trading once again. The purge needed to be stopped before it imploded and corporate valuations were needlessly erased.

If this sounds like a dire situation it is because it most certainly is.  But it is not the end of the world.

Few economists believed Russia’s economy could keep up its breakneck pace. Especially since the gains were based primarily on highly cyclical businesses. Remember, nearly 80% of the country’s market is based on commodities, which typically drop even faster than they climb.

Russia may be reeling in pain, but its problems have created a great investment opportunity. Every single one of its listed equities was in the red yesterday, whether they deserved to be or not. Some of the countries strongest and fastest-growing companies saw their valuations lowered by ten percent or more.

It gives you a perfect buying opportunity. Excellent investments are selling at a rare discount.

A powerful buying opportunity

We took one main rule from the Taipan Group when we created TodaysFinancialNews.com. When an emerging market sells off unexpectedly, pick the three ADRs that have sold off most and buy:

Three stocks in particular caught my eye.  Each of them saw its valuation erroneously stripped by huge proportions.

The first company you need to take a look at is Vimpel-Communications (NYSE:VIP). It’s one of Russia’s strongest and most profitable telecoms. It is the Verizon of Russia.

The great thing about telecoms is their businesses rarely erode. Once folks sign up for their services, they stick around for a long time. Because of that aspect of its business model, Vimpel does not deserve the nearly 50% cut in its valuation it has seen over the past nine months.

After the company announced its most recent earnings results, smart investors realized its value should be increasing. Vimpel’s revenues are growing and its entry into new markets continues at a hefty pace.

Shares are trading at a fantastic discount.  Do not miss this opportunity to get a strong foreign company, which is listed on the NYSE, at a price that will make any value investor drool.

After you are done buying your shares of Vimpel, take a look at Mechel OAO (NYSE:MTL). Four months ago, the mining and steel company was trading for $58. Today, you can get shares for under $20.

Will it go back to $58 anytime soon? Probably not.

Does a company with $7.6 billion in revenues last year deserve a valuation of just $8.09 billion?  Absolutely not! This company is worth at least twice that.  Shares should be selling for around $40, which means American investors have a fantastic opportunity at their feet.

With its coal and steel products being sold around the world, Mechel will continue to see strong annual revenues. After all, the coal industry is just like the telecom industry.  Once a coal plant fires up, it will keep those fires burning for decades.  To do it, they need a constant supply of coal.

Buying shares of this company is no different than buying a dollar bill for just fifty cents.  It is a deal you cannot refuse.

Finally, let’s head back to the Russian telecom. On Monday, Rostelecom (NYSE:ROS) was trading for $65.

Yesterday… about $42.

Today… below $30.

Shares of the company have plummeted thanks to the overall weakness in Moscow. The company is not quite as financially strong as the other two companies, but is so undervalued at current prices that it is an opportunity you cannot miss.

Once the shakeout in Russia slows, investors will start climbing out of the cracks and crevasses they are hiding in and will start looking for the most undervalued and best-performing investments they can find.

No doubt, Rostelecom will be one of them. Just a small bounce in share price could make you big money.

Thanks to the Feds intervention, Wall Street is making a controlled descent.  Russia made an uncontrolled plunge.

Now that Moscow has reached the bottom, smart investors need to search out the most undervalued companies and buy them at fire-sale kind of prices.

This is not an investing opportunity that comes every day.  Take advantage of it.

Source: Moscow crashes: Time to buy Vimpel-Communications (VIP), Mechel (MTL) and Rostelecom (ROS)?

For the tail of the tape; the TSX Exchange added 1.31%, while the TSX Gold Index tacked on 1.4% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, gained 0.16% with the declining issuers beating out the advancers by a 443 to 355 margin on volume of 130 million shares traded.

Shares of Roscan Minerals (CVE:ROS) lost C$0.35 to close at C$0.35 after the company announced that it will not proceed with the acquisition of the Prognoz silver project.

Goldsource Mines (CVE:GXS) managed a modest recovery as some optimism that economic coal could still be found on its coal permits of the Border Property near Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan. Goldsource ended the day up C$4.74 at C$8.89.

Equal partners Thundermin Resources (TSE:THR) and Cornerstone Resources (CVE:CGP) continue to hit the goods on the Little Deer property in Newfoundland. The latest results include 2.2% copper over 16.8 metres. Cornerstone ended the day down C$0.01 at C$0.22, while Thundermin added C$0.015 at C$0.29.

The sellers apparently elected to take a rare day off but indications are they will be back. We will see what Monday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup: Saturday, July 26th, 2008