Fund managers and analysts are beginning to sound a note of unanimity that Russia will become the growth story of 2008. The reason: a combination of continuing strength in oil and gas reserves – Russia is the world’s biggest oil producer – and a rising middle class causing strong growth in the consumer sector.

Russia is, in fairness, one of the so-called Bric countries – Brazil, Russia, India and China – which were identified in 2001 as the emerging market economies from which great things were expected.