Effective Toilet Hedges

Getting sick of those boring hedge products on the market today? Are puts and calls just not doing it for you? Well today is your lucky day because we have a new, highly popular hedge that all the cool kids are using!

Russian Toilets.

You read that right! With the ruble dropping like a stone the modest Russian toilet has become a hedge against further drops:

When the ruble plunged 37 percent in the first half of December, Kazakh businessman Marat Mukhamedov spotted an opportunity: Russian toilets.

Realizing the urinals, tiles and other bathroom accessories he needed to stock the warehouse of his office-refurbishing company were now half the cost of six months earlier, he ordered twice the quantity required for the coming year to take advantage of the exchange rate.

“We spent the equivalent of about $200,000 to double our stock,” Mukhamedov, 37, said from his office at MZ Gesheft in the Kazakh city of Almaty where he’s project manager for the seven-year-old company employing around 50 people. “Now, we have a price advantage against some of the competition.”

Okay, so it probably helps to own a store in Kazakhstan that sells toilets. However, that doesn't mean that the toilet isn't the latest and greatest currency derivative! In fact, as noted in the article, they're perfect:

With depreciation looming, Russian toilets provided the perfect solution for Mukhamedov. “We are a little bit hedged against a possible tenge devaluation by being able to save money on the cost of materials for some time,” he said.

What do you monkeys think is next? Low-flow toilets? Faucets? Something that is not bathroom related?