Marketwatch™: Ukraine’s Stock is Rising

May 3rd, 2006 | by: WC Bob | View Comments

Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin may not be pleased with the state of his team at the moment, but investors sure are happy with what they have seen from Ukraine during the past four years. Over that time period, Ukraine’s stock market has risen 588% – more than any other country in the World Cup. Fellow Group H opponent Saudi Arabia’s market has performed second best with 444% growth (a good thing for its players’ bank accounts), while the markets in Holland and England have grown the least of any of the industrialized countries in the tournament.

For those looking to invest in Angola, Iran and Togo, those countries apparently don’t have active stock markets so you’ll have to find another way to get rich like betting on the World Cup.

Here’s how the nations’ stock markets have performed since 2002. As they say in the financial industry business: “Past performance is not always an indication of future returns.” We have no idea what that means. We’re broke and happy to find change on the street. Nevertheless, the list is still kind of interesting.

Group A
Poland – 176.08%
Germany – 34.69%
Costa Rica – N/A
Ecuador – N/A

Group B
Trin & Tob – 124.34%
Sweden – 71.31%
England – 28.68%
Paraguay – N/A

Group C
Argentina – 418.17%
Ivory Coast – 141.32%
Holland – 11.73%
Serbia – N/A

Group D
Mexico – 203.07%
Portugal – 64.51%
Iran – N/A
Angola – N/A

Group E
Czech Republic – 276.78%
Ghana – 105.09%
Italy – 45.3%
USA – 31.85%

Group F
Brazil – 242.97%
Croatia – 93.76%
Japan – 64.72%
Australia – 55.5%

Group G
South Korea – 81.32%
Switzerland – 34.78%
France – 31.82%
Togo – N/A

Group H
Ukraine – 588.12%
Saudi Arabia – 444.48%
Spain – 72.46%
Tunisia – 37.74%