Facebook tops one billion users worldwide October 4, 2012 FACEBOOK yesterday said it had reached 1bn active users for the first time. Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg (pictured) announced the milestone on his own profile, writing: “Hopefully together one day we will be able to connect the rest of the world too.” The social network, which has experienced a difficult six months since its initial [...]
Evraz buys stake in Russian firm October 4, 2012 Russian steelmaker Evraz yesterday announced it has bought a controlling stake in Raspadskaya, Russia’s largest coking coal firm. London-listed Evraz has bought a further 50 per cent interest in Corber, from Adroliv Investments Limited, which holds an 82 per cent interest in Raspadskaya. The remaining 18 per cent of Raspadskaya’s shares will remain listed on [...]
What the other papers say this morning October 3, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES End to Russian petrodollar surplus Russia’s petrodollar surplus is poised to vanish as early as 2015 as import revenues overtake those from oil exports, according to its central bank. The forecast is the first official acknowledgment that the economic model which has characterised Vladimir Putin’s leadership – a country buttressed by oil money [...]
Third largest bank from Russia prices stock for London listing October 3, 2012 PROMSVYAZBANK took another big step towards listing shares in London yesterday, setting the price range for its initial public offering. Russia’s third largest bank is joining the flood of firms from the country rushing to the UK, following larger compatriot Sberbank which listed in London last month, and coming ahead of VTB, another bank looking [...]
Shell opens Russia lubricants plant October 3, 2012 Shell yesterday opened a new lubricants blending plant in the Tver region north-west of Moscow, the first to be built by an international oil company in Russia. The new plant will supply a range of finished consumer, transport and industrial lubricants, blending up to 200m litres a year and creating 150 Russian jobs when at [...]
What the other papers say this morning October 2, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Blow for British nuclear revival A Franco-Chinese consortium has walked away from the race to build Britain’s new generation of reactors in a setback to the government’s hopes of ushering in a revival of nuclear power. The expected bid by French engineering company Areva and China’s Guangdong group for the Horizon nuclear joint [...]
Glencore buys stake in grain hub October 2, 2012 Commodities giant Glencore has bought an interest in a deep sea grain export terminal in Russia. It has entered into a 50-50 joint venture agreement with Ukraine’s Kernel to buy the interest from EFKO Group. Taman, on Russia’s Black Sea coast, is close to Russia’s main grain producing region, and Glencore said the acquisition will [...]
Events group ITE hit by currency woes but forecasts leap in sales October 1, 2012 EVENTS group ITE yesterday said foreign exchange rates had hit its bottom line this year, although the firm’s sales are due to be in line with market expectations. The group, which organises exhibitions and conferences in developing markets and is reliant on Europe and Russia, said the pound’s strength against the euro and ruble had [...]
Who’s switching jobs October 1, 2012 Barclays Jim Murphy has been appointed director of financial institutions trade in Barclays’s trade and working capital team. He joins from HSBC, where he was a director in its project and export finance team. Murphy has also worked at Deutsche Bank. BlackRock James Wilkinson has been appointed European chief investment officer for BlackRock’s global real [...]
TNK-BP seals $675m finance September 25, 2012 RUSSIA’S third-largest oil company TNK-BP has signed a $675m loan with a group of banks, falling short of its targeted $750m after one bank was unable to commit to the financing, banking sources said yesterday. The firm, which is in the middle of a tug-of-war between the Kremlin and shareholders BP and AAR, will use [...]