The Moscow Times

Business: RenCap Cuts RTS '08 Target to 2,350
Renaissance Capital on Monday slashed its year-end forecast for the benchmark RTS Index from 3,000 to 2,350 and increased its equity risk premium for the country from 4 percent to 5.5 percent in a sign of continued investor jitters.

News

Tanks on Greek Premier's Agenda
The Associated Press Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis flew to Moscow on Monday for an official visit focused on expanding energy and military cooperation.

Stavropol Farmer Reaps Benefits of Inflation
By Alexander Osipovich / Staff Writer While inflation means tighter times for some people, farms are profiting handsomely thanks to soaring food prices.

EU Cultural Institutions Protest Clampdown on British Council
Reuters European cultural institutes have sent a letter to the Culture and Press Ministry expressing deep concern over the ordered closure of two offices of the British Council, the British government's cultural arm.

Retrial in Klebnikov Case Halted
Reuters The Moscow City Court on Monday halted the retrial of two suspects accused of the 2004 murder of U.S. journalist Paul Klebnikov because one of them was still at large, court officials and a defense lawyer said.

Kyrgyz Leader's Party Wins All Seats
By Olzhas Auyezov / Reuters Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's party won every available seat in the next parliament, preliminary results showed Monday, after weekend elections sharply criticized by Western monitors and the opposition.

Pora Leader Asks U.K. for Asylum
By Natalya Krainova / Staff Writer An opposition activist who met with Alexander Litvinenko shortly before he was poisoned said Monday that he had applied for political asylum in Britain.

SPS Leader Resigns Over Duma Elections
By David Nowak / Staff Writer Shouldering much of the blame for his party's poor performance in parliamentary elections, Union of Right Forces leader Nikita Belykh tendered his resignation Monday at a party congress.

First Shipment of Nuclear Fuel Goes to Iran
By Christian Lowe / Staff Writer Russia has delivered the first shipment of nuclear fuel to Iran's Bushehr atomic power station, a step both Moscow and Washington said should convince Tehran to shut down its disputed uranium enrichment program.

Turkish Strike Made With U.S. Knowledge
The Associated Press Iraqi leaders complained Monday that Turkey had not coordinated with Baghdad before sending dozens of warplanes to bomb Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq the day before.

Miss Belgium Draws Flemish Ire
The Associated Press Newly crowned Miss Belgium speaks several languages, including French, English and Czech, but it seems that does not count for much when she does not speak Dutch.

Scent of Victory Surrounds the 'Bulldozer' in Korean Election
Reuters South Korean voters are preparing to head to the polls, ready to end 10 years of rule by liberal presidents by selecting a former businessman who promises to run the world's 13th-largest economy like a CEO.

Squabbles Embitter Contest to Lead South Africa's ANC
The Associated Press Impromptu rallies among African National Congress delegates Monday offered another glimpse of the unusually public and bitter contest over who will take over leadership of South Africa's ruling party -- and possibly of the country.

Donor Talks to Center on Settlements
By Francois Murphy, Arshad Mohammed / Reuters Dozens of countries met on Monday to pledge billions of dollars in aid to the Palestinians in support of Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas, but disputes with Israel on settlements and checkpoints darkened the mood.

Saudi Rape Victim Pardoned
Reuters Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has pardoned the victim of a gang rape, whose sentencing to 200 lashes caused an international outcry, a Saudi newspaper said Monday.

Business

Platinum at Record on License Fear
Bloomberg Platinum rose to a record in London on speculation that Russia, the world's second-largest producer, will not approve licenses for the new year, spurring borrowers to tap other sources of supply.

Reiman Sees 3G in 10 Cities Next Year
Bloomberg Mobile TeleSystems and competing Russian mobile phone companies will be able to offer fast wireless services in Moscow next year as it becomes possible to obtain frequencies, IT and Communications Minister Leonid Reiman said Monday.

4th Suspect Facing Charges in Storchak Embezzlement Case
Combined Reports A fourth suspect has been charged in connection with the prosecution of Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak on suspicion of attempting to embezzle $43 million, his lawyer said Monday.

Potanin to Block Issue at Polyus
Reuters Members of the board of Polyus Gold representing co-owner Vladimir Potanin said Monday that they would boycott the board meeting this week in order to block a new share issue proposal.

Hyundai Picks St. Pete for $400M Plant
The Moscow Times South Korea's Hyundai has picked St. Petersburg as the site for its plant in Russia, in a move to boost its profits in the country's booming car market.

Severstal Goes Green For $436M
Combined Reports Severstal borrowed 300 million euros ($436 million) from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on Monday to fund a program to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Gazprom, Shell Delay Sakhalin LNG Exports
By Damon Evans, Dmitry Zhdannikov / Reuters Gazprom-led Sakhalin Energy said Monday that it would complete its liquified natural gas plant in late 2008, in a move effectively delaying supplies to Asia by at least a few months.

E.On Hails Progress in Tomsk Gas Talks
Combined Reports German-based utility E.On said Monday that it had made ""major progress"" in talks with Gazprom aimed at giving E.On a stake in a Tomsk region gas field, but that the value of the potential deal had yet to be worked out.

BP, Gazprom Hold Talks Over Kovykta
Combined Reports BP chief executive Tony Hayward flew into Moscow on Monday and held talks with Gazprom chief Alexei Miller on the companies' stalled deal over the Kovykta gas project, as well as potential international cooperation, Gazprom said in a statement. The talks came as a source close to Gazprom warned on Monday that the Kovykta deal was at risk because the company could not agree with TNK-BP on historical costs. ""It has been a systematic problem. If it goes on like this, the deal scenario will change,"" the source said.

Business in Brief

Business in Brief
Parliament Opposes LinkGazprom Neft's New FirmCAT Oil Wins 3-Year DealMatra to Produce Oil HereLatvijas Gaze PlungesInflation Rate QuickensUralSib Borrows $137MMongolia Seizes CoalTech Sales to Hit $73BlnEx-Anglo Exec Joins RusAlGold, Coal Auction Date SetCoca-Cola to Pulp PlantMagnit Sales Up 46%Kyivstar to Get 3G License

Medvedev Is Doomed by Weak Links to FSB
Dmitry Medvedev, who was ""elected"" by President Vladimir Putin, is one of the few people in Putin's close circle who does not have any connections, as far as we can tell, with the Federal Security Services.

Great Shell Game in Duma
The final composition of the State Duma has been established. Over 100 candidates who ran on the federal tickets of the four winning parties have rejected their posts and refused their mandates.

Saving the Relationship
After President Vladimir Putin said last month that Russia would not allow other countries ""to poke their snotty noses into our affairs,"" we should face the fact that security relations with the West are in a shambles. Putin, who is fond of tough-guy slang, used the colorful phrase when he accused the United States of pushing the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to decide against sending observers to the State Duma elections on Dec. 2.

Radical Heart Beats Anew
By James Marson / Special to The Moscow Times A tour of Moscow sites associated with Alexander Herzen.

Chef's Secrets: Charbroiled Chicken and Vegetable Salad
By With Sour Cream / Special to The Moscow Times A recipe from Narek Avagyan, head chef at the Cafe Ararat in the Ararat Park Hyatt Moscow hotel.

A Neighborhood Nook
By Nathan Toohey / Staff Writer Hidden inside a lonely courtyard off Prospekt Mira is the recently opened Haus Bar. It is certainly a brave location for this modest, medieval-themed restaurant, as there is no passing traffic except the odd local resident shopping at the grocery store next door.

No Place for Religion in Political Race
Patriarch Alexy II has blessed First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as the next president, giving a literal meaning to the idea that Medvedev is President Vladimir Putin's anointed successor.

News in Brief
Ingush Held in Bus BlastNavy Test-Fires Missile

Charlemagne Plans to Raise $290M
Reuters Emerging markets investment manager Charlemagne Capital said Friday that it hoped to raise 200 million euros ($291 million) for a fund to invest in property developments in Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Region Insulated From the Crisis
By Gergely Szakacs / Reuters Central Europe's real estate market is relatively safe from the global credit crisis, but Baltic countries may face risks due to high capital inflows, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors believes.

Complex Built in Baden-Baden Spirit
By Max Delany / Staff Writer Over the centuries, crowds of Russians from aristocrats to oligarchs have flocked there. Ivan Turgenev chased the woman he loved to the town and Fyodor Dostoevsky gambled away all his money in the local casino.

Kazakhstan Real Estate Cools Off
Reuters Growth in Kazakhstan's real estate prices slowed to around 50 percent year on year in November after a peak of more than 70 percent during summer months, official data showed Wednesday.

Crystal Island Receives City Approval
The Moscow Times Leading British architect Norman Foster looks set for another major Russian project, this time a large, eye-catching entertainment and business center in the south of Moscow.

Komatsu to Open Plant in Yaroslavl
Bloomberg Komatsu, the world's second-largest maker of earthmoving machinery, will start its first factory in Russia to assemble excavators and forklifts by June 2010 to benefit from the nation's oil-funded construction boom.

A Good Pilot Is Needed for Smooth Flight
Whenever a Russian economist says he teaches ""the problems of economic security,"" other professional economists have treated this in a contemptuous manner.

Putin Will Be Medvedev's Premier
By Nabi Abdullaev / Staff Writer President Vladimir Putin said Monday that he would accept the post of prime minister if Dmitry Medvedev becomes president, and he promised not to divert any presidential authority to the prime minister's office.

Community Bulletin Board

Community Bulletin Board
Community Bulletin Board

« to older

Features

Services

Tools

MT news

Testimonials

Sponsored links

News

Business

Business in Brief

Community Bulletin Board

Currency Exchange

Weather

Hurdles Ahead.

Most Popular Stories.

Archive

Columnists