How a 54 yr-old grandma and others are surviving Russia's economic gloom

Despite the wild ups and downs, day trading has grown in popularity among Russians, many of whom are tired of trying to live off official wages and watching bank savings dwindle in real terms

When Natalia Orlova isn’t working a $400-a-month job at a Moscow factory that makes Cold War-era space rockets, she’s glued to the trading app she uses to speculate on oil.

Lately, the 54-year-old has made a small fortune as crude jumped to 3-1/2 year highs, some of those gains linked to America’s latest sanctions on Russia. Like tens of thousands of Russians, Orlova says day trading is the key to surviving economic gloom: she just bought a new Infiniti and is saving up for an apartment for her two grandsons.

“Financial markets are the one place where you can really