The Moscow Times

Market Matters: Struggling Stocks Spur New Record Oil Prices
Oil hit another record of just under $143 as global stocks tumbled last week, with the Dow briefly dipping into bear market territory as investors sought safety in gold, government debt and the Swiss franc.

News

A Building's Restoration May End in Its Loss
By Kevin O'Flynn / Staff Writer It stands like a victory for Moscow architectural preservationists who have witnessed the disappearance of so many historic buildings in recent years.

New Firm at Crux of Ukraine Gas Deal
By Miriam Elder / Staff Writer RosUkrEnergo, the murky gas-trading vehicle half-owned by Gazprom, will continue to handle sales from Russia to Ukraine until a replacement can be set up, company officials said Wednesday.

Ad Firms Complain of Vote Pressure
By Simon Shuster / Reuters Authorities are coercing advertisers into giving billboard space to United Russia ahead of the March 2 presidential election, executives with two ad firms said.

No Closer to Treatment
Reuters A lawyer for jailed former Yukos executive Vasily Aleksanyan said Wednesday that his transfer to a civilian hospital failed to comply with the European Court of Human Rights' demands.

Last Annual Press Conference for Putin
The Moscow Times President Vladimir Putin on Thursday is to give his last annual Kremlin news conference before stepping down from office in May.

Both Sides Hold Fast at Russia-EU Talks
The Associated Press Talks between Russia and the European Union on Wednesday left the two powers firmly entrenched on opposite sides of one of Europe's most sensitive issues: Kosovo's plan to declare independence from Serbia.

Moscow Set for Kosovo Replay
By Douglas Hamilton / Reuters When Russia tangled with the West over Kosovo nine years ago, it bit off more than it could chew and eventually backed down.

Churov Takes Calls From Voters
By Natalya Krainova / Staff Writer Central Elections Commission chief Vladimir Churov is not only the country's top election official. Apparently, he's the man to call for anyone who has a problem.

Pentagon Is Assessing Flyover
Combined Reports The Pentagon is trying to assess whether a low-level flight by a Russian bomber over U.S. warships in the Pacific Ocean last weekend was a sign that Moscow is returning to a worrisome ""Cold War mind-set,"" a top defense official told Congress.

Tatar Media Abuzz Over Obama Catchphrase
By Alexander Osipovich / Staff Writer The U.S. candidate's 'Yes, we can!' echoes the words of Mintimer Shaimiyev.

Patarkatsishvili Death 'Suspicious'
By Nabi Abdullaev and David Nowak / Staff Writers Arkady Patarkatsishvili, who had claimed that the Georgian government had planned to kill him, died in his mansion in Surrey, southwest of London late Tuesday, age 52.

Business

Sberbank Increases Stock Trades
Reuters Sberbank has not raised its limits on the stock it owns but is getting more active in the market, deputy chief executive Bella Zlatkis said Wednesday.

Court Calls for Break in BoNY Case
Bloomberg The Moscow Arbitration Court called a break in hearings in a $22.5 billion lawsuit brought by the Federal Customs Service against the Bank of New York as wrangling continued over a document the bank's lawyers say was forged.

Barclays Tipped to Buy Into Expobank
By Catrina Stewart / Staff Writer British banking giant Barclays, whose investment-banking arm left Russia in 1999 nursing $250 million in losses, could be poised to enter the country's fragmented market with the acquisition of small-size lender Expobank as it looks to tap the country's underdeveloped mortgage market.

New Foster Project for St. Pete
Bloomberg Norman Foster, the British architect of the Moskva-City skyscraper that will be Europe's tallest, was selected to design a $220 million complex in St. Petersburg, his first foray into elite housing in Russia.

Bootlegged Booze Sales Fall 14%, Industry Says
By Tai Adelaja / Staff Writer Fewer Russians are choosing bootlegged spirits and industrial alcohol over legally produced vodka and liquor, Pavel Shapkin, the president of the National Alcohol Association, said Wednesday.

Lenta Mulls Sale to Fund Superstores
Bloomberg Lenta, the country's third-biggest food retailer, may sell a stake of as much as 20 percent to raise funds for new superstores.

Medvedev Backs Farming TV Channel
By Tai Adelaja / Staff Writer Presidential candidate Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday called for a 24-hour television channel on farming in an apparent bid to win support from the country's farmers ahead of next month's presidential vote.

Rosneft Eyes Indian LNG Stake
Combined Reports Rosneft, the country's largest crude oil producer, may buy a stake in a liquefied natural gas processing plant planned by Indian state energy firm ONGC in the southern Indian city of Mangalore, a senior Russian official said Wednesday.

Business in Brief

Business in Brief
SocGen's Rosbank BuyCity Center to Remove AdsNorilsk Environmental CaseLufthansa Overflight RightsBad Roads Take $73Bln Toll21 Million Left in PovertyAlekperov to Go to IraqRostelecom to Sell HoldingFor the Record

Icon: Inspired Chocolates
By Maria Antonova / Staff Writer Vdokhnovenie chocolates come from an era when the greatness of the Soviet Union was defined by ""rockets and ballet,"" as one well-known song goes.

Yakudza Settles Down
By Nathan Toohey / Staff Writer Looks like Gosti was just dropping by, as the downtown cafe that opened less than a year ago is already gone. In its place has opened Yakudza, a pan-Asian eatery.

Let Sculptors Keep Their Mansion
Federal authorities' efforts to wrestle control of a historic mansion from the nongovernmental organization that restored it are appalling.

Travel News
Vladivostok Avia will launch a new itinerary to Frankfurt beginning April 30. Flights will depart from Moscow at 12:20 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, and arrive at Frankfurt-Hahn airport, about 75 miles from Frankfurt.

A Moscow Region Escape
By Maria Antonova / Staff Writer A place for when you start daydreaming of leaving the madness of Moscow behind.

Making a Buck with Wile and Some Hot Air
By Georgy Bovt Addressing the annual security conference in Munich on Saturday, First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, who was once a leading candidate to succeed President Vladimir Putin, said, ""We respect those values that the United States and Europe have cultivated for centuries.

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