Chairman of oil giant Gazprom, Dmitry Medvedev, is the candidate who will likely boost Russian equity markets, and exchange traded funds (ETFs). Recent political uncertainty in Russia has had investors on watch to see who will be the next president. Polya Lesova for MarketWatch reports that Vladimir Putin has backed the nomination of Medvedev to succeed him next March as Russia’s president.

Medvedev is seen as a positive signal for economic policy. He is the more liberal, technocratic, and business-friendly of the front runners to succeed Putin. In Moscow the markets rose on news of his nomination.

ETFs that may be affected by the elections include:

• SPDR S&P BRIC 40 ETF (BIK) up 34.1% since June launch
• iShares MSCI BRIC Index ETF (BKF) up 6.8% since November launch
• Claymore’s Bank of New York BRIC ETF (EEB) up 67.5% year-to-date
• Market Vectors Russia (RSX) up 31.1% since May launch

Tags: Russia