Russian lawmakers approve $7.5 billion crisis fund for neighboring economic partners

September 29th, 2009 MOSCOW - Trade between India and Russia could reach $10 billion in 2010, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov said Tuesday. "Trade is forecast to reach $8.4 billion in 2009, and we are able to...

September 6th, 2009 Kuwait fund: No plans to sell Citi, Merrill stakesDUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund says it has no plans to sell off the stakes it took in Citigroup and Merrill Lynch because it has faith in the U.S. banks' long-term potential.

August 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - India will get the equivalent of about $4.78 billion as its share of International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Special Drawing Rights (SDR) worth $250 billion to provide liquidity to the recession hit global economic system. IMF will make the general SDR allocation on Aug 28 following formal approval by its board of governors last week of the proposal to allocate SDRs equivalent to $250 billion to provide liquidity to the global economic system by supplementing the Fund's member countries' foreign exchange reserves.

August 12th, 2009 KARACHI - Pakistan has received $1.2 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as the third tranche of an emergency loan agreed to last year, the central bank said. "We have received $1.2 billion from the IMF," State Bank of Pakistan spokesperson Syed Wasimuddin told The News.

July 29th, 2009 IMF to boost funds for poor countriesWASHINGTON — The International Monetary Fund said Wednesday it will sharply increase funds it lends to low income countries to help them deal with the global financial crisis. The IMF said it expected to provide up to $17 billion to these countries through 2014, including up to $8 billion over the next two years.

July 3rd, 2009 $10B plan would ship gas from Africa to EuropeABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria, Algeria and Niger have signed an agreement to create a $10 billion pipeline that would ship gas across the Saharan desert to Europe, Nigeria's state oil company said Friday. The plan comes as Europe seeks new sources of gas imports as it currently depends on Russia for much of its needs.

June 26th, 2009 Hard Rock plans hotel and casino in HungaryBUDAPEST, Hungary — Hard Rock International and two Austrian firms say they will develop a Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in northwest Hungary, near the border with Austria and Slovakia — despite the economic crisis. Hard Rock chairman Jim Allen said Friday that the resort is expected to open in early 2012 in the town of Bezenye, 160 kilometers (99 miles) from Budapest, the Hungarian capital, 80 kilometers (50 miles) from Vienna, and just 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Slovakia's capital, Bratislava.

June 26th, 2009 Spain comes to banks' rescueMADRID — Spain's government on Friday unveiled a fund of up to euro90 billion ($125.46 billion) to help banks restructure and cope with the effects of recession. Finance Minister Elena Salgado told a news conference after a Cabinet meeting that the money will be used for capital injections, to help with mergers and to fund restructuring plans.

June 19th, 2009 EU warns of new gas supply crisisBRUSSELS — European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso warned EU countries Friday to prepare for another natural gas supply crisis if Ukraine can't pay for gas imports from Russia. Russia sends the gas it sells Europe through pipelines that cross Ukraine and has cut off all supplies — including gas intended to heat European homes and fuel power plants — in previous disputes with Kiev.

June 16th, 2009 Russian industrial output plummetsMOSCOW — Russia's industrial production plummeted 17 percent in May, the government said Tuesday, further evidence that the country's economy is still nowhere near stabilizing, let alone recovering. Government officials have voiced confidence in recent weeks that the recession has bottomed out and Russia would start seeing a moderate growth.

June 2nd, 2009 Senator: Highway fund will go broke in AugustWASHINGTON — The Obama administration is warning that the trust fund that pays for highway construction will go broke in August unless Congress approves an infusion of as much as $7 billion. Sen. Barbara Boxer, the chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said at a hearing the administration has told senators the Federal Highway Trust Fund will need an estimated $5 billion to $7 billion to keep current construction projects going.

April 25th, 2009 World Bank to aid poor countries with public worksWASHINGTON — The World Bank said Saturday it would provide poor countries with more than $55 billion for public work projects left in limbo when the recession dried up capital investment. The goal is to create jobs and lay the foundation for future economic growth and poverty reduction.

April 24th, 2009 Hypo says German gov't wants to take 90 pct stakeFRANKFURT — Hypo Real Estate says German government intends to take 90 percent stake for euro5.6 billion ($7.4 billion). The bank says in a statement released Friday that the bank's management and supervisory boards approve the takeover offer from the government's German Special Fund for Financial Market Stabilization, or SoFFin.

January 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - International Finance Corp (IFC), a World Bank member organisation, Tuesday anounced it will spend $6 billion to support the private sector in emerging markets hit by the global financial crisis. IFC will double the existing global trade finance programme to $3 billion over a three-year period to meet a large increase in demand for short-term trade finance.

December 26th, 2008 MOSCOW - Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom has said its dispute with Ukraine over payments could cause disruptions in deliveries to Western Europe, a news agency reported. Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said that the head of the Russian gas behemoth Alexei Miller had notified Europe's largest clients that it could not rule out the possibility of a cut off, according to Itar-Tass.