Russia's status as one of the BRIC countries appears well deserved, with its growth levels poised to reach five per cent at the end of the year. Alongside Brazil, India and China, the country is enjoying an economic strength that much of the developed world has yet to rediscover in the wake of the recent [...]

High-end phones are often crammed with apps and gadgets to the extent that their basic functionality can be impeded. Indeed, the range of possible smartphone uses have been expanding exponentially, but often to the detriment of a handset's lifespan and design. But a new player to the Russian market, Aesir, has arrived with a limited [...]

The Russian rouble hit a nine-month low against the US dollar yesterday (Monday, 19 September) as oil prices suffered. By midday, the currency was also struggling against the euro-dollar basket after weakening 1.7 per cent to 36.37, Reuters reported. In addition to weak oil prices, capital investment cap in slightly below analysts' forecasts, which may [...]

The rouble slid to its weakest level against the US dollar yesterday since the first trading day of the year. Data from Reuters revealed that the Russian currency stood at 30.31 versus the dollar at opening trade on Monday (12 September). By 06:09GMT, the rouble had dropped by a further 1.1 per cent to reach [...]

Drilling and testing of the first horizontal well in the Russian Zapadno Chumpasskoye Field has exceeded expectations. Heritage Oil Plc reported that production from Well 363 is currently at a controlled rate of 1,205 bopd, contributing to the overall field production rate of c.1,600 bopd. This is a significant increase on the 431 bopd recorded [...]

The Russian market has helped a French car maker to keep its head above the ground amid a poor performance in Europe. PSA Peugeot Citroen, France’s biggest car maker, reported a fractional increase in worldwide sales of 0.2 per cent for the first half of 2011 compared to the same six months last year. As [...]

Russia has been flagged up as an important market for people interested in alternative investments. The Alternative Asset Analysis group, an alternative investment advocacy group, claimed that Russia is offering an increasing level of opportunity for people interested in the art and antiques market in particular. An appetite for high value art and the developing [...]

The ban on exporting grain from Russia has ended, leading the Central Bank to consider a number of options to control the market situation. Russia introduced the ban in August of last year as drought and wildfires resulted in a substantial decrease in the country’s grain yield. To avoid a national shortfall in grain supplies [...]

The latest preliminary figures from Russia’s Federal Statistics Service show that the country’s economy grew 4.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2011, compared with the same period in 2010. The growth was broadly in keeping with government projections, with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin predicting an overall GDP growth of 4.2 per cent this [...]

The Central Bank of Russia has indicated that it may raise interest rates to further strengthen the rouble. First Deputy Chairman of the bank, Alexei Ulyukayev, told reporters last week, "I see further upside potential". The rouble now stands at its highest level against the dollar since 2008. Senior figures at the Central Bank – [...]