"In Russia, as in many other emerging markets, a new crop of homegrown companies is on the rise," says global expert John Christy, editor of The Forbes International Investment Report.

He says, "While relatively unknown outside their home markets, these firms have proven to be worthy competitors against much bigger multinationals." Here's a look at Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods (NYSE: WBD).

"In a research report in March, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) called these emerging companies 'Local Dynamos'. Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods was one of just three Russian companies to qualify for BCG's exclusive list. WBD is Russia's largest food and beverage company.

"It has a whopping 76% market share for dairy products like milk and yogurt.It is the #3 player in beverages,mainly fruit juices,and it has the #1 market share for baby food in Russia.

"In developed markets, selling baby food and fruit juice is a mature,ifnot mundane business.But in Russia,these can still be considered relatively attractive growth opportunities.

Aflac (NYSE: AFL) is a new addition to the "Borderless Portfolio" maintained by global expert John Christy. Here's the latest from his industry-leading Forbes International Investment Report.

"If you own a television, chances are you're quite familiar with the infamous squawking duck in Aflac's commercials. Aflac has also been in the news lately as the first American company to give shareholders a 'say on pay', or the ability to vote on executive compensation.

"Less well known, however, is Aflac's huge presence in the Japanese insurance market. In 2007, roughly
75% of the company's pre-tax operating earnings were generated in Japan.

"Alfac has been doing business in Japan for more than 30 years, and one in four Japanese households has an Aflac insurance policy. In Japan, Aflac sells healthcare policies for certain things that aren't covered by the national healthcare system, as well as life insurance. And, yes, they have a talking duck in their ads over there too.

"At a time when many financial companies are reporting massive write-offs, Aflac reiterated its target of 15% earnings growth this year, and double-digit growth in 2009. Aflac Japan is doing its part to help drive this growth with 19% operating earnings growth in the first quarter of 2008."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest market commentary and favorite investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

"As is the case with most countries in the Middle East, Israel rarely comes up in discussions of global 'safe havens', notes John Christy.

The editor of The Forbes International Investment Report explains, "But so far this year, Israel has been a pretty good place to hide from Wall Street's woes." Here he looks at one Israeli favorite, Cellcom Israel (NYSE: CEL).

"Putting stereotypes about risk aside, Israel offers a lot of interesting opportunities, even for fairly conservative investors. Cellcom Israel is a prime example. The company is Israel's largest mobile phone service provider, with sales of $1.6 billion in 2007.

"Since February 2007, the company has had a dual listing on both the New York and Tel Aviv stock exchanges. Discount Investment Corp. Ltd., one of Israel's largest business groups, owns just over 50% of the company.

"With 3.1 million subscribers, Cellcom has a 34% share of Israel's mobile telecom services market. Roughly three-quarters of Cellcom's subscribers are individuals, and the remaining 25% are corporate customers.

"Many of the industries that we think of as 'mature' in the U.S. are still in their infancy in Russia," notes global expert John Christy.

In his Forbes International Investment Report, he notes, "Advertising is a perfect example. Overall, the Russian ad market is growing at a 25%-30% clip." Here, he looks at CTC Media (NASDAQ: CTCM), one of the leading TV broadcasters in Russia.

"In 2007, total advertising spending in Russia was approximately $9 billion versus just $1.1 billion back in 2000. To put things in perspective, consider that in the U.K., Europe's largest ad market, spending is roughly $22 billion.

"With more than twice the population of the U.K., Russia's advertising market is less than half its size. Of course, it will take a very long time for Russia's economy to become as developed as Britain's but there is clearly a lot of room for growth.

"Television companies will be a prime beneficiary of this trend. TV accounts for about half of all advertising spending in Russia, or about $4.4 billion. And television advertising has been growing at 40% annually, an even faster pace than that of ad spending overall.

"One of the easiest ways for investors to tap into this growth is through CTC Media. The Moscow-based company is Russia's fourth-biggest broadcaster, with an 11.3% audience share.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (NASDAQ: IIJI) is the top global speculation from John Christy, editor of The Forbes International Investment Report. He notes, "Japanese small caps have been clobbered in 2006 -- down about 50% year-to-date.

"The group got hammered by the Livedoor scandal earlier in the year and never got back on its feet. And with blue chips such as Canon and Toyota delivering double-digit gains, there wasn't much need to bother with smaller companies anyhow.

"This should change in the year ahead. International markets have done extremely well across the board and investors are looking for pockets of opportunity.

"In particular, hedge funds have been sifting through the rubble in Japanese small caps. These companies tend to be more profitable, more entrepreneurial -- and much cheaper -- than their large-cap peers.

"IIJI's net income doubled in its most recent quarter on strong demand for its IT outsourcing services. As Japan Inc. continues to restructure, IIJI's expertise will continue to be in demand. At a recent $9, IIJI sells for less than 20 times earnings.

"The company recently moved to the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which will boost its visibility with investors. There's still a lot of risk -- IJII has been an extremely volatile stock. But as long as IIJI continues to deliver strong profit growth, there will be plenty of upside."

To see John's favorite conservative international idea for 2007, click here.