The Moscow Times

Market Matters: RTS Has Toughest Week Since '99
Trading on the dollar-denominated RTS exchange was suspended three times on Friday as anxiety deepened over whether the U.S. House of Representatives would pass a $700 billion financial sector bailout package and share prices on Russian and international markets plummeted.

News

Medvedev Scolds U.S., Offers a Hand
President Dmitry Medvedev took aim at the United States on Saturday, blaming it for the current global economic gloom, while positioning Russia as a key player in restoring confidence and stability.

A Forum of Drinks, Magic and a Flying Pig
By Max Delany, Nadia Popova / Staff Writers The organizers of the weekend’s festivities in the northern capital make sure that there is something at the party for everyone.

Nationalists Meet to Form Coalition
By Natalya Krainova / Staff Writer Leading nationalist organizations formed a broad coalition Sunday to promote nationalist ideology and broaden their appeal among voters.

Chubais Says Reforms Require Competition
Reuters A leading architect of the country’s post-Soviet economic transition said Sunday that without political competition, President Dmitry Medvedev’s reforms could not be properly implemented.

Scenes From the St. Petersburg Forum
Interpress / AP Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters, center, performing with the members of his band on Palace Square on Friday. Ria-Novosti / AP Medvedev visiting an exhibition at the Lenexpo exhibition center on Saturday. Dmitry Lovetsky / AP Medvedev smiling after an announcer starts to introduce him as Vladimir Putin. Dmitry Lovetsky / AP Dancers presenting the uniforms for Russia's Beijing Olympic team on Sunday. Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters Medvedev greeting Belarus' Alexander Lukashenko on Friday. From left are the leaders of Moldova, Ukraine, the CIS alliance, Armenia and Turkmenistan.

Armenian Diaspora Goes Home
By Maria Danilova / Staff Writer What would prompt a young family to abandon a comfortable life and move to a poor country where running water is still a luxury for many, politics are messy and the threat of war looms large?

Rail Troops Will Leave Abkhazia
Reuters The Defense Ministry said Saturday that it would withdraw 400 soldiers sent to repair damaged railroad lines in Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia within the next two months.

Saakashvili Opens Parliament Early
By Misha Dzhindzhikhashvili / The Associated Press Opposition lawmakers refused to take their seats in Georgia’s parliament Saturday, claiming that last month’s elections were rigged in favor of the ruling party.

7 Dead in Japan After Killing Spree
The Associated Press A Japanese man rammed a truck into a crowd of shoppers, jumped out and went on a stabbing spree in Tokyo's top electronics district Sunday, killing at least seven people and wounding 10 others.

Clinton Calls It Quits, Endorses Obama
The Associated Press Hillary Rodham Clinton suspended her pioneering campaign for the presidency and pivoted from her role as determined foe to absolute ally, summoning supporters to use ""our energy, our passion, our strength"" to put Barack Obama in the White House.

Earthquake Kills 2 In Greece
The Associated Press A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.5 struck southwestern Greece on Sunday, flattening homes and killing at least two people and injuring dozens more, authorities said.

Business

Gazprom Wants to Build Pipeline From Alaska
Reuters The company hopes to strike an agreement with BP, ConocoPhillips or TransCanada on shipping gas to the U.S. mainland.

Database to Fight Corruption
Reuters The government will up the fight against corruption with a special electronic property database allowing officials to see more easily what people own, Justice Minister Alexander Konovalov said Saturday.

Kudrin Urges World to Cooperate on Finance
Reuters Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin on Saturday called for better coordination between global financial institutions and said NATO should be consigned to history.

RenCap Starts Infrastructure Fund
The Moscow Times Renaissance Capital and Australia’s Macquarie Group on Saturday announced the establishment of the first major infrastructure fund for Russia and the CIS as the government plans investments of $1 trillion into upgrades of facilities such as ports, railways, roads and airports.

Growth Seen Slowing to 3%
Reuters Goldman Sachs warned on Sunday that Russian growth could soon slow to about 3 percent per year, far below Kremlin forecasts predicting the country will be one of the world’s top five economies by 2020.

Alrosa Says It Could Bid Up To $50 Per Share for Polyus
Reuters Diamond miner Alrosa will consider bidding for control of Polyus Gold at a price of $40 to $50 a share, the company's chief executive said Saturday.

Prokhorov To Consider 3-Way Deal On Metals
By Nadia Popova / Staff Writer Billionaire investor Mikhail Prokhorov said Saturday that he would not rule out a three-way merger of Norilsk Nickel, United Company RusAl and Metalloinvest, but said it needed “detailed consideration.”

Forum in Brief
Flights From Riga to SochiGryzlov Eyes Water ExportsKiriyenko on Bushehr WorkBombardier and TransmashOPK Plans $1Bln IPOX5 Open to Buying LentaAeroflot Gives Up on AlitaliaEnel to Sell OGK-5 Stake50 New Superjet OrdersAvtoVAZ Plans Share SaleChemezov Eying UdokanLUKoil to Stabilize OutputUsmanov's Aims SupportedFor the Record

Dvorkovich Qualifies Investment Call
Reuters Arkady Dvorkovich, the top economic aide to President Dmitry Medvedev, criticized some types of foreign investment Saturday, saying Moscow did not need investment which limited Russian companies’ opportunities.

Gazprom Warned Off TNK-BP
aCombined Reports Gazprom should not buy into TNK-BP and the dispute between its shareholders will worsen if one side does not sell out, a senior government source said Sunday.

Fiat to Produce Cars, Engines
Combined Reports Italian automaker Fiat and Sollers on Saturday announced joint-venture agreements for producing Fiat cars and diesel engines in Russia.

Business in Brief

Business in Brief
Pacific Dockworkers StrikeBASF Buys Into Gas FieldShmatko on Nuclear EnergyPromsvyazbank Bond IssueTrade Surplus Falls in AprilMagna to Double SedansRusAl Plans Finnish Port

Going Back East
By Maria Antonova / Staff Writer Russian-Americans working in the financial services sector find more opportunities in Moscow than in New York.

What to Do
By John Wendle / Special to The Moscow Times Pop-eyed monsters floating in space. Technicolor prints combining 19th-century anatomical design with drawings of strange robots and clockwork mechanisms.

My Bad, Khodorkovsky
During Russia's first two presidencies, as in most of the millennium that preceded them, the rule of law was frequently more honored in the breach than the observance.

Celebrating Russia's Independence
It's amazing how difficult it is to remember the name of the holiday on June 12. First it was called Independence Day in 1991, then, in 1994, it was renamed the Day of the Declaration of the Sovereignty of the Russian Federation, and finally, in 2002, Putin again renamed it Russia Day.

Restaurant News
By Nathan Toohey / Special to The Moscow Times The city's restaurants continue to unveil their summer terraces, patios and balconies. The Pinocchio chain of upmarket restaurants has simultaneously opened three summer outdoor options.

Southern South Korean
By Nathan Toohey / Staff Writer You could call Sammi the secret Korean restaurant. Its location is certainly hard to find -- there's absolutely no way you could just stumble upon it while walking by.

News in Brief
37 Ukraine Miners Trapped2 Explosion Victims FoundJets Tail Finnish Premier3 Dagestani Gunmen KilledTraffic a National ProblemPolice Chief's Car Attacked

Soap Operas Replace Opposition on Imedi
A huge portrait of the moustachioed tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili still hangs from the tower of the Wedding Palace, the imposing Soviet building that was his home in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, before his unexpected death this year.

Parsing the Schumer Plan
It's not only supply and demand that drives markets, it's fear itself. After the Israeli transportation minister threatened last week to attack Iran's nuclear facilities if Tehran continues with its program for developing nuclear weapons, the price of oil jumped more than $10 a barrel, sending the U.S. stock market down by 400 points.

Market Matters

U.S. Woes Weigh Heavy on Investors
By Tim Wall / Staff Writer Russian markets slid on the week as investors didn’t quite know whether to focus on a strong domestic economy or a flurry of U.S. financial news, while inflation hit its highest rate in 5 1/2 years.

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