‘If Maxi Group actually enters the weldless pipe market, its rivals are bound to try to prevent the company from succeeding in the business,’ UralPromSnab’s Sales Manager Dmitriy Gilvanov said to UrBC. He is also inclined to think Maxi Group might experience some difficulties creating the demand for its goods. ‘Consumers are more likely to buy weldless pipes from a company with a well-established reputation, a company they have for a long time been doing business with,’ Mr. Gilvanov observed. Maxi Group has recently started putting up a weldless pipe production plant in Revda; experts tend to

‘The fact that two large Yekaterinburg-based car dealers have been campaigning against each other via mass media resources is sure to affect them both badly. If it is actually proved that the companies themselves are behind the negative publicity targeted against one another, they are simply going to lose all the credibility as far as their customers are concerned,’ Andrei Tavolzhanskiy, PR Manager of Obratnaya Svyaz Agency (based in Moscow), said to UrBC. Mr. Tavolzhanskiy believes if some bad reports on the companies appear online often enough, they will gradually seep in the potential

‘Our customers normally come to us with pre-chosen mortgage schemes from this or that bank, yet no one has ever come with an offer from URALSIB,’ Director of SV Nedvizhimost Ltd Svetlana Scherbinina said to UrBC, explaining the reason why her real estate agency is not at all aware of the bank’s mortgage offers and sees no reason for doing business with URALSIB. In the meanwhile, the number of Sverdlovsk Region-based banks that deal in mortgage lending keeps growing, and so does the variety of options. However, this has not resulted in greater numbers of given mortgages: this year, the amount

A round table discussion devoted to the new banking season was held in Yekaterinburg on August 24, 2007. A number of representatives of crediting and non-profit organizations from both Yekaterinburg and Moscow took part in the event. The main point on the agenda covered the issue of the banking crisis. Bankers claimed there was not going to be any crises in the upcoming year. ‘In fact, we expect our business to expand next year,’ SKB-Bank’s Deputy Chairman Alexander Kudryavtsev said. The banking experts support the idea of the banking sector’s stable development; some drastic political and

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of loans given by VUZ Bank to sole traders for 91 to 180 days went down by 53.44% (from 78.343 million RUR to 36.478 million RUR) in January-July 2007.

According to the Central Bank of Russia, volume of for-profit self-regulatory organizations’ deposits in UralFinance Bank valid for 181 days to 1 year went down by 92.31 (from 32.5 million RUR to 2.5 million RUR) in January-July 2007.

According to the Central Bank of Russia, volume of loans given by Plato Bank Ltd to natural persons for a term of over three years went down by 83.84% (from 4.145 million RUR to 670,000 RUR) in January-July 2007.

Central Bank of Russia reports volume of for-profit self-regulatory organizations’ deposits in SberInvestBank valid for 1 to 3 years went down by 35.71% (from 21 million RUR to 13.5 million RUR) in January-July 2007.

‘The summer tourist season is gradually coming to an end; the city dwellers have already bought tours for September and are considering offers available for the upcoming fall. Egypt is definitely going to get the greatest number of travelers in the next few months, as people are attracted by inexpensive trips to Hurghada as well as by premium class hotels and nice service in Sharm El Sheikh. Apart from that, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, and Goa are also expected to enjoy great popularity with tourists,’ Director of Inna Tour (a Yekaterinburg-based travel agency) Inna Averyanova said to

‘The current state of events at the local agricultural market is simply deplorable. The problem is of social rather than economic nature, since the livelihood of thousands of people depends on the conditions and opportunities of producing and selling their foods,’ Farming Coordination Director of Chelyabinsk Region Ministry of Agriculture Igor Kushnirenko said at the round table discussion devoted to ways of introducing the quality produce of local farmers on the regional markets. ‘Helping our farmers sell their produce should be seen as a top priority national challenge. These types of food