Putin’s 7 biggest economic problems: Evercore ISI chairman

The economic problem list for Russian President Vladimir Putin is piling up, says big name investor Ed Hyman.

Evercore ISI’s closely followed chairman revealed seven key issues now facing Putin’s economy in a new note Tuesday afternoon:

“The Ruble has plunged.”
“The plunge in the ruble could push inflation to over 20%+”
“The stock market has plunged.”
“The policy rate is up to 20%.”
“Unprecedented economic sanctions are being applied.”
“Foreign companies are shutting down their Russian operations
“Russia is being cut off from the rest of the world.”

To be sure, it’s getting ugly for Russia in light of its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Well-known Western multinationals such as Mastercard, Visa, HP and BlackRock have sought to distance themselves from doing business in Russia. Yahoo Finance has an exhaustive list of companies pulling away from Russia.

The maneuvers come as the West blocked “selected” Russian banks from the SWIFT payment system. The decision essentially denies Russia access to financial markets globally and opens its economy up to a potentially severe decline.

The economic situation in Russia has turned so rapidly that JPMorgan strategists tell Yahoo Finance the country is “uninvestable.”

Global asset markets continue to reflect the yawning uncertainty around how the invasion will end and the long-term economic fallout.

The S&P 500 tumbled 1.55% to 4,306.26 at the close Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 1.76% to 33,292.95. The Nasdaq Composite also dropped 1.59% to 13,532.46. Losses also hit the 10-year U.S. Treasury index slid to 1.7%. Meanwhile, Brent crude oil prices traded above $100 a barrel.

“I think given what is going on in Russia and Ukraine, especially with the weaponization of money that the Western world has decided to at least initially combat that with I think that has led to a flight into safe-havens inclusive of Treasuries. I think a lot of that buying is because of the uncertainty with regard to Russia,” explained Charles Schwab chief investment strategist Liz Ann Sonders on Yahoo Finance Live.

One winner this week has been bitcoin, suddenly viewed as a safe haven, reports Yahoo Finance’s crypto reporter David Hollerith. Bitcoin prices traded up 7% Tuesday afternoon to about $44,000.

Yahoo Finance’s Alexandra Semenova contributed to this story.

Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.