What are the latest trends in the retail real estate market, and why are the regions still so challenging for many developers and investors? Natalia Tischendorf National Director, Capital Markets Department Jones Lang LaSalle, Russia & CIS What are the latest trends in the retail...

After considerable growth of retail real estate investment deals in Russia in 2010-11, a major intrigue is the possibility of active expansion of institutional investment deals into regional markets. We already see that such high-quality retail assets as Karnaval in Chekhov and Victory...

Global sportswear giant Nike plans to sign a franchising agreement with re:Store Retail Group — which operates a chain of Apple branded stores in Russia and Europe — to open 15 local outlets in the next three years. Global sportswear giant Nike plans to sign a franchising agreement with re:Store Retail...

The Federal Anti-Monopoly Service has approved an application from Agrotorg, a subsidiary of X5 Retail Group, to purchase structures in Siberian food store chain Holiday Classic, Interfax reported Friday. Holiday is the largest retail chain in the Siberian region. It manages the Kora, Holiday Classic, Holiday Discounter, Siberiada and Palata stores...

Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works said Friday that shareholders approved its board of director's decision to pay no dividends for 2011. (Reuters) Torgovy Dom Tsentrobuv, Russia's biggest shoe retailer, signed a 5 billion ruble ($157 million) loan agreement with Sberbank until May 22, 2015, the retailer said on its website. (Bloomberg)

A financial company related to Swedish furniture retailer IKEA said Friday that it was setting up a bank in Russia. A financial company related to Swedish furniture retailer IKEA said Friday that it was setting up a bank in Russia. The bank will be a 50-50 joint venture between the company, IKANO...

The government approved new rules for the retail electricity market, Vladimir Putin said at a meeting devoted to the issue, Interfax reported Friday. The new rules, Putin said, "govern relations between suppliers and consumers of electricity and contain several major innovations." The...

The Investigative Committee is conducting a search at the Moscow office of consumer electronics and household appliances retailer Eldorado as part of an inquiry into claims of large-scale tax evasion, Interfax reported Tuesday, citing committee spokesman Vladimir Markin. The committee's St. Petersburg branch has accused the Telebalt company, which delivered products to...

Two major publishing groups may merge, as Eksmo is negotiating to purchase or merge with AST, Vedomosti reported Friday. Estimates differ over which of the two publishers is Russia's largest. They both have their own logistics and retail networks. According to the SPARK database and Unified State Register of Legal Entities, most of the companies in AST Group, which total more than 100, are owned by the Cyprus-registered AABP Advanced Achievement Books Publishers. According to the...

X5 Retail Group said Thursday that its net profit fell 32 percent in the first quarter while sales were about flat in dollar terms. X5 said its net profit was $66.3 million, down from $96.9 million in the same period last year. Sales were 0.7 percent up...

... for the country's defense needs are located in two nearby towns. But now it welcomes foreigners, with students coming from abroad to study at the local university. The city has also attracted a few foreign companies in recent years, including French retailers Auchan and Leroy Merlin and Germany's Metro Cash & Carry. What to do if you have two hours Given the size of the city, choosing an activity that will last a couple of hours is a tricky task. Other than a walk along the Yenisei embankment, locals...

... in prison and a 1 million ruble fine. Investigators are trying to determine whether anyone else at the company was involved in the extortion scheme. Aeroexpress has a monopoly on train service to Moscow’s three airports and owns a building with retail space adjacent to Sheremetyevo Airport. In February, the company also started running trains from the Adler airport to downtown Sochi. 179742

... food-price inflation. "Uncertainty over the scale of influence of the mentioned factors remains a substantial source of midterm inflationary risks," the Central Bank said. The bank said the economy was running close to capacity, but although retail lending and consumption were growing, it did not see any pronounced impact on prices from rising demand. The next policy meeting will be held in the first half of June, the central bank said. 179738

... Continent financial director Sergei Kutsenko told Vedomosti. Banks charge vendors 1.5 percent or more of the purchase price for each card transaction, so working with cash is more profitable for most businesses, said Lavrenty Gubin, a spokesman for retailer Dixy Group. The comparable European Union rate is 0.5 percent. 179742

... 0.1 percent. The economic deceleration was expected by analysts, following other recent data that also point to diminishing economic momentum. "Some slowdown in April compared to March shouldn't be a surprise, seeing as we saw some slowdown in retail sales and the industrial production figures were sickly," said Dmitry Polevoi, economist at ING in Moscow. "We may have more negative surprises in investment in the months ahead. … Overall confidence among private manufacturers...

... range of services to corporate clients. Auchan Group's banking unit and Dutch Credit Europe Group have embarked on establishing a joint bank in Russia to expand their presence and provide a broader range of services to corporate clients, which include retail chains Auchan and Leroy Merlin, the companies said in a statement Monday. The partners have filed a petition with regulators to register the joint venture, which is scheduled to start work next year, said the statement published on the website...

... different areas: from server administration to end-user desktop system and specialized marketing IT systems support. Sometimes, even core business functions are outsourced to a systems integrator. Indeed, this happened earlier this year when a large retailer with an extensive regional chain contacted us to create an electronic archive of accounting records. After cost estimation of infrastructure deployment, including storage systems, scanning and character recognition systems and infrastructure...

... by British firm AlexKravetzDesign, the 12-story hotel has more than 200 rooms, a restaurant, bar and ballroom, as well as a fitness center and spa. It is part of the Summit multifunctional complex, which contains 6,000 square meters of premium-class retail space and a Class A business center designed by the British firm Chapman Taylor. In high season, the average standard room can cost almost $1,000 a night including breakfast. Lotte Hotel Moscow The Lotte was opened by the South Korean conglomerate...

... important law after the Constitution" has become obvious. These amendments are intended to improve the economy and investment climate in Russia. Florian Schneider, LL.M. Rechtsanwalt (Attorney-at-Law) Managing Partner, Moscow, Head of Global Retail Group, Salans The Civil Code of the Russian Federation has not undergone major revisions for more than 15 years. In that time, there have been fundamental changes to the economy and laws governing commercial activities. The need for amendments...

... systems. Post: Sales Manager. Functions: searching of potential customers, dealers and engineering companies; marketing research of metal-plastic piping systems; creation and filling of clients database; budgeting; participation in calculation of retail market prices and discount programs. 12/2006 – 06/2007 – The Moscow representative office of the company "Georg Fischer Piping Systems" (Switzerland). Company’s direction of activity: production and sales of plastic piping systems...