The Templeton Russia & East European Fund Closed-End Fund Has Been Dropping Like A Rock

As I have previously mentioned, Russia is projected to be one of the fastest growing economies over the next several decades. According to a 2003 Goldman Sachs report, Russia's economy is projected to grow much faster than the U.S.'s from now until 2050, and its currency exchange rate is projected to strengthen by 200+%. Russia therefore presents an exciting investing opportunity and assuming Russia maintains a stable political system, should be an excellent market in which to invest over the next several decades. However, the Russian stock market is not for the faint of heart. The Templeton Russia & East European Fund Closed-End Fund (TRF), one of the best-performing funds investing solely in Russia, has dropped from $79.12 at Monday's market close down to $69.99 as of today's market close, a drop of 11.5% in just two days! However, the fund is still up 28.1% so far in 2006. Despite its overall impressive returns, the volatility can be somewhat unsettling.