By Edward Hugh: Barcelonabr /br /Russia's foreign-exchange reserves have been now been declining very rapidly since mid August, and as the money goes so does the faith that the large stock of reserves the country built up during the boom times would be sufficient to see them through any downturn in energy prices. As the money leaves, so it seems does the decade of economic growth and stability which they symbolised. Indeed so rapid has been the decline that Russia's international reserves, which are the third-biggest after those of China and Japan, have now fallen $161 billion, or 27% percent, since 8 August last, and decreased by $17.9 billion to $437 billion in the week to 5 December. Investors have now pulled $211 billion out of the country since August, according to estimates by BNP Paribas.br /br /br /pa href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ngczZkrw340/SUbQptNe4tI/AAAAAAAALyE/K0xlBOy3AlA/s1600-h/russia+GDP.png"img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5280137028067844818" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: ...

Key News• Singapore's non-oil exports fell for a fifth month in September from a year earlier as a global economic slowdown cut consumer demand for electronic goods from the city-state. (Reuters)• Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat says he won't step down despite growing calls for his resignation in the wake of a deadly confrontation between police and protesters last week. (AP)• Financial Crisis Snapshot: "There's no chance of a 1929-1933 depression. We know the lessons and we know how to stop it happening again," – FSA chairman Adair Turner. (Reuters)

Key Reports (WSJ):8:30a.m. Sep Housing Starts: Expected: -1.1%. Previous: -6.2%. 10:00a.m. Mid-Oct Reuters/U Mich Sentiment Index: Expected: 65. Previous: 73.1. Quotable “Blaming speculators as a response to financial crisis goes back at least to the Greeks. It's almost always the wrong response.”  Larry SummersFX Trading – Hodgepodge

An L-shape recession is our guess

Global shift in

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