2. About the financial markets

The Russian market rallied today, gaining back half of what he lost earlier. More importantly the Rouble recovered a similar amount. I would love if and then how Russian financial entities acted. One should keep in mind Ben Graham: “In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run it is a weighing machine.”

In any case the sharp increase in interest rates, which are now arguably far too high for the weak Russian economy will work against it for the time being.

What I thought highly interesting that Putin decided to act today in a 'calming manner'. While most of the market gains happened earlier panic in the Russian financial markets is obviously no good.

Vladimir Putin has described the turmoil in the financial markets as a tactical and temporary state of affairs, during his ongoing press conference on Ukraine (live on Sky News channels now, and streamed here).

He also tried to pin some of the blame on America, saying that there was already a degree of nervousness due to certain US policies (ie, the slowing of the Federal Reserve’s huge stimulus programme).
I wonder when the last time was that he commented about the financial markets. That he tried to blame some of the crash somehow on the America was however not unexpected...