Business Watch
John Bonar
Reducing Supply Chain Barriers Could Increase Global GDP Up To 6 Times More Than Removing All Import Tariffs
Reducing supply chain barriers could increase global GDP and world trade much more than reducing all import tariffs, according to a new report released today by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with Bain & Company and the World Bank.
Mobile internet expected to trigger growth in Russian telecoms market to over $31bn
The Russian telecommunications market is growing, fuelled by investments of mobile operators and broadband internet access services expansion. It is now expected to cross the value of €31bn in 2012. Further 3G-LTE development is outstripping WiMAX and CDMA.
Russian tycoon Deripaska blasts Russian business stereotypes
In the run up to Christmas last year many people missed an article in City AM authored by Oleg Deripaska. In the London business newspaper Deripaska, chairman of Basic Element, president of En+ and chief executive of UC RUSAL, blasted the results of a recent Economic Intelligence Unit survey of 200 international senior executives. Less than less than 15 per cent would view merging or being acquired by a Russian partner as a positive development. They would prefer to deal with firms from any other Bric economy over Russia. The same survey highlighted the continued mistrust and lack of confidence about management attributes, and the abilities of Russian companies in general.
Russian girl murdered in London, Portuguese man arrested
British police have detained Felipe Lopes, 27, on suspicion of murdering his Russian girlfriend Anastasia Voykina, 23, who was found dead in her flat earlier this morning in the south of London.
2013 is going to be an interesting year for British-Russian relations.
The Conservative Party has abandoned its erstwhile Friends of Russia group but far from killing it off, the move has liberated the group’s Chairman Richard Royal and he has renamed the group the Westminster Russia Forum and brought in controversial former diplomat Craig Murray as guest speaker at its Old New Year dinner in the Samarqand Restaurant on the 14thJanuary. The author of Murder in Samarkand is expected to be well received by the audience and will be a far different speaker than the originally scheduled patrician Sir Malcolm Rifkind.
Russia prepares for 9-day break
Russia takes a nineday break from next Sunday. Trading will be very
quiet everywhere this week because of the Christmas holiday and the lead up
to the New Year break. Moscow’s bourses will trade normal hours all week
and will also open for a session on Saturday, but trading is expected to be very
light. Russia’s New Year holiday starts next Sunday and runs until January 9.
AAR says will reinvest most of proceeds from TNK-BP sale back in Russia
The Russian tycoons cashing in their 50% share of TNK-BP to state controlled Rosneft have publicly pledged to fulfil President Vladimir’s call for them to reinvest the bulk of their proceeds back in Russia, their consortium AAR has said on 25th December. The deal is Russia’s biggest takeover deal with both BP and its local partners selling their share of 50% each in TNK-BP to Rosneft.
5 mn tourists set new record for Moscow
Five million foreign tourists visited Moscow this year, setting a new record for the capital, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said last week at a meeting with foreign diplomats in the capital..
Russia’s Gazprom Export and Matheson agree cooperation
Gazprom Export and Matheson, a member of the Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation (TNSC) group, have signed an agreement setting out the basis for their future cooperation in the development of Gazprom's substantial helium reserves in Eastern Siberia.
Russia to finance Indonesian purchase of six Flanker fighter aircraft
Russia's Vnesheconombank (VEB) will provide Indonesia a total of $399.5 million in credit to finance purchases of six Russian-made Su-30MK2 Flanker multirole fighter aircraft and related equipment. The equipment will be supplied by Russia's state-run arms export company Rosoboronexport.