Investing in Russia is a tricky business. Just ask BP or Shell. Now it is the turn of Carrefour and Renault to feel the pain.

Europe’s biggest retailer announced last week that it was pulling out of the Russian market barely four months after opening its first store there. This week, it is the turn of the French car group to find out that Russia is not the Eldorado that many carmakers thought it would be barely two years ago.