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

Critical Kremlin Reporter Expelled
By Kevin O'Flynn / Staff Writer A journalist was refused entry to Russia on Sunday, just days after publishing a story that claimed the presidential administration had a secret multimillion-dollar fund that it used to finance parties during the State Duma elections.

Changes Loom for Yabloko and SPS
By David Nowak / Staff Writer After disappointing Duma elections, Yabloko decides not to support Yavlinsky in the presidential vote and SPS considers rebranding.

China Prevailing In 'Great Game'
By Mansur Mirovalev and Douglas Birch / The Associated Press The driver of the 18-wheel tractor-trailer from China idling at the Kazakhstan-China border said apples were the cargo he brought to Almaty, Kazakhstan's booming commercial center. For Kazakhs, there's a tart irony in the shipment.

Bukovsky Kicks Off Long-Shot Bid
Combined Reports Several hundred supporters gathered Sunday to nominate Soviet-era dissident Vladimir Bukovsky to run for president in March's election, but official residency requirements will make it hard for him to qualify for the race.

MN to Stop Publishing on Jan. 1
By Max Delany / Staff Writer It may have outlived perestroika and survived the Yukos affair, but now financial problems seem to have sunk the weekly newspaper Moskovskiye Novosti.

Vorontsov, U.S. and UN Diplomat, Is Dead at 78
The Associated Press Yuli Vorontsov, a veteran diplomat who served the Soviet Union and Russia as ambassador to countries from Afghanistan to the United States in a career spanning the Cold War and the Gulf War, has died, the Foreign Ministry said. He was 78.

General Lashes Out at Pentagon
The Associated Press The country's top military officer on Saturday accused the United States of seeking direct confrontation with Moscow and warned again that U.S. plans to deploy missile defenses in Europe would destabilize the continent.

Fears of Turmoil as Kyrgyzstan Votes
By Bagila Bukharbayeva / The Associated Press Kyrgyz voters cast ballots for a new parliament Sunday in elections that many fear could cause further political turmoil. Opposition groups say President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's government plans to falsify the elections in an effort to oust his staunchest rivals from the legislature.

Lavrov, Brown Trade Barbs in British Council Dispute
Reuters Foreign Minister Segeri Lavrov accused Britain on Friday of systematically trying to undermine diplomatic ties, but British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he had the European Union's backing in a dispute over the activities of the British Council.

Briton Charged in Murder of Wife and Grandmother
By David Nowak / Staff Writer A British citizen is in custody on suspicion of killing his new wife and her grandmother and then trying to commit suicide in their apartment in the Tver region, investigators said.

Experts See Democracy, Murder in Crystal Ball
By Simon Saradzhyan / Staff Writer Russia's resurgence on the world stage and its economic growth will continue, but the country will not evolve into a full-fledged democracy in the next decade if Vladimir Putin succeeds in transferring power to his successor and oil prices stay high, a new report says.

Zyuganov Promises to Fight Medvedev
By Dmitry Solovyov / Reuters The Communist Party on Saturday nominated leader Gennady Zyuganov to run for president in March -- a vote where he faces a daunting challenge against President Vladimir Putin's preferred successor.

Klebnikov Retrial to Start
Reuters The Moscow City Court will open a retrial Monday of two Chechens accused of murdering U.S. journalist Paul Klebnikov.

Other Russia Activist Sent to Psychiatric Hospital
The Associated Press An Other Russia activist was committed to a psychiatric hospital before government protests, supporters said Friday -- the latest in a series of incidents suggesting a punitive Soviet-era practice is being revived.

Swiss Man Asks Minsk for Asylum, Then Leaves
By Natalya Krainova / Staff Writer A Swiss citizen who asked for refugee status in Belarus has returned to Switzerland without explanation after spending 10 days in the country, Belarussian officials said.

Belarus Will Pay 19% More for Gas
Combined Reports Belarus will pay 19 percent more for Russian gas beginning next year, Gazprom said Saturday, a day after President Vladimir Putin announced $1.5 billion in loans to help its economy adjust to rising prices.

U.K. Outspends U.S. at World Bank
Reuters The United States lost its status as the largest donor to the World Bank's main fund for poor countries, the lender said Friday, as Britain pledged more in the latest funding round that secured a record amount of aid.

Catholic Church Charged With Soul Poaching
Reuters The Roman Catholic Church on Friday defended its ""right and duty"" to spread its message to nonbelievers and to welcome converts, particularly from other Christian churches.

EU Plans Mission to Kosovo in Anticipation of Independence
Reuters European Union leaders agreed on Friday to send administrators and police to Kosovo ahead of its expected secession from Serbia, which branded the mission an attempt to create a ""puppet state"" on its soil.

Turks Bomb Rebels Deep Inside Iraq
Reuters Turkish warplanes targeting Kurdish rebels bombed villages deep in northern Iraq on Sunday, killing one woman and forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes, local officials said.

Britain Hands Basra Over to Iraqis
Reuters Britain handed over security in Basra province to Iraqi forces on Sunday, effectively marking the end of nearly five years of British control of southern Iraq.

Bali Talks Agree on Road Map
Reuters Nearly 200 nations agreed at UN-led talks in Bali on Saturday to launch negotiations on a new pact to fight global warming after a last-minute reversal by the United States allowed a breakthrough.

Business

Canadians Give Up On Yamal
Reuters Petro-Canada is staking its ambitions in Russia on Gazprom's $3.5 billion Baltic liquefied natural gas project, having given up on a venture on the Arctic Yamal Peninsula, the company's chief executive said Friday.

Georgia Halves GDP Growth Forecast
Reuters Georgian Finance Minister Nika Gilauri halved his forecast for 2008 economic growth on Friday, saying political turmoil had scared off foreign investors.

Latvia Agrees to Pay Gazprom About 50% More for Its Gas
Reuters Latvia's gas company said Friday that it had struck a gas supply deal with Gazprom for 2008 through 2010, which could lead to a rise in prices of up to 50 percent, depending on heavy fuel oil price changes.

X5 to Buy Hercules for $65M
Reuters The country's leading food retailer, X5 Retail Group, said Friday that it had signed an agreement to acquire the Strana Gerkulesia, or The Land of Hercules, discounter chain for $65 million including debt.

RZD Tries E-Ticketing Experiment
The Moscow Times Russian Railways showed off a trial e-ticketing system Friday that will cut out some of the hassle of traveling on the country's notoriously cumbersome rail network.

Dairy Firm Shrugs Off Milk Woes
Reuters The country's top dairy produce firm, Wimm-Bill-Dann, on Friday beat forecasts with a 22.7 percent rise in third-quarter net profit despite a surge in raw-milk costs and showed strong sales growth across all segments.

Germany's Minister Urges Less Red Tape
The Moscow Times German Economics Minister Michael Glos on Friday urged the Russian government to step up its battle against bureaucracy and to improve the legal environment for investors.

3 Top Health Ministry Officials Quit
The Moscow Times Three senior officials at the Health and Social Development Ministry, including the head of the Pension Fund and the deputy head of the Social Insurance Fund, have quit their posts, the ministry said Friday.

Investigators Join Quake Cash Probe
Bloomberg Investigators are looking into the effort to rebuild an earthquake-devastated town on Sakhalin, it was revealed Friday, a day after Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov rebuked Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin over the ""loss"" of money earmarked for the project.

Kudrin Meets Storchak in Lefortovo
Combined Reports Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin has met with his deputy Sergei Storchak, charged with attempting to embezzle $43 million, for the first time since Storchak's arrest, his ministry said Friday.

Ford Union Ends Strike, Plans Talks
Combined Reports U.S. carmaker Ford will resume full production at its plant near St. Petersburg on Monday after a four-week strike that threatened to curtail a planned increase in output.

Feuding Norilsk Delays Power Sale
By Catrina Stewart / Staff Writer Shareholders blocked the spinoff of Norilsk Nickel's energy assets Friday in an anticipated move that casts a pall over the miner's development plans.

Business in Brief

Business in Brief
Lift All Bans, Tusk SaysInvest Into Ukraine PipelineHambro's 2 Sets of ReservesTransneft Average Up 19%Nord Stream Steel DealKorean Uranium VentureRosneft Ruble BondsAlstom Train VenturesNovorossiysk Port Up 91%Alliance Oil Mulls IPOVietnam Backs Oil VentureGazprom Eyes BoliviaPotanin Gets All Prof-MediaRenova Media Credit Line

Ask the Boss
By James Marson Q: Should employees expect a New Year's pay raise?

Chemicals and Culture
By Marina Kamenev / Staff Writer Shchusev Architecture Museum director David Sarkisyan has dabbled in professions ranging from science to film.

Stemming Climate Change
By Brook Horowitz At the United Nations Conference on Climate Change that has just concluded in Bali, the world's governments agreed to begin two years of negotiations to replace for the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.

A Bad Blend of Brezhnev and Abramovich
By Vladimir Ryzhkov A new political model has emerged after the State Duma elections -- Putin's model. Putin began constructing this model in 1999, but it only reached its most advanced stage this fall.

Restaurant News
By Nathan Toohey The Grabli chain of democratic eateries has released a range of festive tortes and cakes, just in time for the upcoming holidays.

The Smoky Local Pub
By Nathan Toohey / Staff Writer Everyone loves a pub -- or at least everyone in their right mind should. So the residents of Baumanskaya neighborhood were in luck when the Dublin pub opened earlier this year on Staraya Basmannaya Ulitsa. And the Dublin pub certainly has the feel of a real local.

Living With Cheap Oil
By Alexei Bayer The deflation of the real estate bubble began with a weak link -- the subprime segment of the U.S. mortgage market among poor homeowners who were unable to service their loans.

Sechin's Clan the Loser in a Week of Surprises
By Francesca Mereu / Staff Writer The Prosecutor General's Office ordered an inspection of the Investigative Committee's activities on Friday, capping a week of stinging blows to a powerful Kremlin clan led by Kremlin deputy chief of staff Igor Sechin.

Medvedev Would Tip Scales in Gazprom's Favor
By Anatoly Medetsky / Staff Writer If elected president, Dmitry Medvedev will most likely tip the scales in favor of Gazprom in any new acquisitions and help the state-controlled gas giant with domestic prices and taxes.

News in Brief
Ryzhkov Won't RunChechen Gunbattle Kills 5Ingush Post AttackedTymoshenko Vote TuesdaySerial Killer Suspect on TrialCall for Help in CaucasusArmenia Newspaper BombSuspects Linked to Iran

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