July 31, 2013. the Economic News Agency came up with a political weight rating of Russian businesspeople by order of Nezavisimaya Gazeta. The quarterly rating is called 50 Most Influential Entrepreneurs & Investors in the second quarter of 2013; BOD Chairman of Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) Viktor Rashnikov was given the 17th position in the rating (the Strong Influence category) – the result was the same as in the previous quarter, and this is, in fact, one of the highest positions in the Russian metallurgical industry. The methodology of the rating that Nezavisimaya Gazeta

July 31, 2013. Pipe Metallurgical Company (TMK), one of the world’s leading OCTG manufacturers, has recently supplied its goods in cooperation with an external manufacturer for the first time. A set of pipes meant for the surface casing was shipped to Kura Valley Operating Company; these will be used for the development of Padar deposit in the Republic of Azerbaijan, the company’s press service reports. ‘The shipment included some surface casing with couplings with premium threaded joints TMK CWB and TMK PF and casing without couplings with premium threaded joints ULTRA-FJ and ULTRA-SF. The

July 31, 2013. Seversky Rabochiy, a company newspaper published by Seversky Pipe Plant (STZ, a member of Pipe Metallurgical Company/TMK), won in two specialized contests: it proved the best large-circulation issue dedicated to coverage of trade unions activity among the enterprises in the ore mining and metallurgical sector and also won in TMK Chrystal Furnace company newspaper competition, the company’s press service reports. The company newspaper contest run in the ore mining and metallurgical sector attracted scores of large-circulation newspapers run by Sverdlovsk Region-based

July 31, 2013. A new international photo exhibition was presented at Seversky Pipe Plant’s Severskaya Blast Furnace Museum. The exhibition is called There Are No Borders to the World – There Are Cardinal Directions, the enterprise’s press service reports. The project features two exhibitions, in fact. The first one is called Greece in My Heart and was coordinated at the initiative of and with the efforts of representatives of Corinth Pipeworks S.A. (CPW), a partner of Pipe Metallurgical Company in their joint venture TMK-CPW (based on the premises of one of Seversky Pipe Plant’s departments).

July 31, 2013. The trade turnover in the Ural Customs Administration area decreased by 8.9% in the first half of 2013 and the freight turnover declined by 15.9% against a year earlier as well, the Administration’s press service reports. At the same time, the number of cargo manifests processed rose by 12.4% and the number of foreign trade operators rose by 5.5%; the number if exporting countries dropped by 1.6%, the number of importing countries has remained the same. According to the customs officers, the decrease in the trade turnover involving the CIS member states had to do with decreased

July 31, 2013. Stock exchanges stopped trading Uralkaliy’s shares at 2:58 pm Moscow time as the quotations dropped by over 20% compared with the price at the close of business the day before, Prime reports. The only trading that still goes on is the repo and negotiated deals mode ones. A discrete auction will be held in the T+ mode in the meanwhile.