Archives for October 2014

Reuters / Brendan McDermid

Standard Poor’s rating agency has held Russia’s sovereign rating steady at BBB- dismissing concerns of a possible downgrade to junk status and admitting Russia’s debt is “moderate” compared to most of the other major world economies.

“We are affirming our ‘BBB-/A-3’ long- and short-term foreign currency ratings and our ‘BBB/A-2’ long- and short-term local currency ratings on Russia,” SP said in a statement on Friday providing a sigh of relief for markets.

The agency said it maintained the current rating because of Russia’s net external asset position and moderate government debt.

SP also maintained a negative outlook on Russia adding that it could lower its ratings on Russia over the next 18 months “if its external and fiscal buffers deteriorate faster than we currently expect.”

Back in April the agency cut Russia’s rating to BBB-, which is one step above junk level – non-investment-grade territory. But prior to the Friday announcement, most analysts and top Russian officials said that the further downgrade was unlikely.

Russian Finance Minster Anton Siluanov has said that fears of Russia’s sovereign rating being downgraded were exaggerated. He also said that the government’s and Central Bank’s policies as well as sufficient foreign exchange reserves and low public debt were behind SP’s decision to maintain the sovereign rating.

Head of the Analytical Department of the RusRating agency, Aleksander Ovchinnikov, told RT that SP’s decision will likely stabilize the market.

“The decision by the SP to preserve the rating will reduce tensions and lead to some recovery in asset prices on the domestic and foreign market,” Ovchinnikov says.

The analyst says that SP rating scale is the most “conservative” on the market today, and that other agencies such as Moody’s, Fitch, as well as Japanese JCR rate Russia higher on their scales, which corresponds to at least BBB by the SP.

“According to the assessment of one of the major rating agencies in the Asia-Pacific region, Dagong, the Russian Federation has “A” level credit rating, considering the whole range of opportunities and risks of the country, as a borrower,” Ovchinnikov stressed, adding that under no circumstances a “junk status” could reflect the real investment climate in Russia.

“The rating is primarily is an assessment of a relative level of the creditworthiness of the borrower, the assessment of a relative level of credit risks associated with the subject of the rating, the ability to meet its obligations on time and in full,” Ovchinnikov said.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/199120-sp-keeps-russia-rating/

Russian President Vladimir Putin (RIA Novosti / Vitaly Belousov)

The sanctions imposed on Russia by the US and the West, among other financial blunders, are mistakes that have triggered the world to de-dollarize. Russian President Putin describes this as like “cutting down the branches, upon which they are sitting.”

Putin said that sanctions have an overall negative effect on the entire global community, and actually motivate countries to seek financial sovereignty from the status quo.

President Putin was speaking at 11th annual meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club in Sochi, Russia. The panel was fittingly called, “The World Order: New Rules or a Game without Rules.”

“Politically-motivated sanctions have intensified the trend of economic and financial sovereignty, the desire of countries and regions would like to secure themselves against outside pressure,” he said.

Dependence on a single global power will decrease, and new reserve currencies, such as the yuan and ruble, are already starting to emerge.

READ MORE: Defying the dollar Russia China agree currency swap worth over $20bn

“Now, an increasing number of countries are attempting to move away from dollar dependence and to establish alternative reserve currencies and settlement systems,” the President said.

Maintaining global equilibrium becomes difficult when everyone stops playing by the rules, the President said, citing the precedent of the Cyprus bailout and the “politically-motivated” sanctions against Russia over its action in Ukraine.

READ MORE: Russia brings WTO complaint over ‘illegal’ US sanctions – Medvedev

“Now they risk losing confidence as the leaders of globalization. My question is- why would they do it? The prosperity of the US depends on its investors, those that own dollar debt,” he said.

“I think our American counterparts are sawing the branch they are sitting on,” Putin said,

Putin warned of the danger of mixing politics and economics, especially when nations are so deeply financially intertwined.

The West and Russia have increasingly become divided over the crisis in Ukraine, in which Russia accuses foreign powers of stirring up sentiment, and the West seeks to punish Russia for reclaiming Crimea.

READ MORE: Lavrov: West’s ‘colonial-style’ sanctions on Russia have little to do with Ukraine

US and EU sanctions against Russia include bans on long-term loans from Western capital markets, and bars the import of high tech oil equipment and technology, as well as weaponry to Russia.

Despite the cold diplomatic exchanges in the past year, Russia is ready for dialogue to normalize relations, the President said.

The annual panel includes the President and Prime Minister of Russia, who meet with the club members, both Russian and foreign experts in international affairs.

The club was created in September 2004 to promote dialogue between the Russian and international intellectual elite, and meets each year in a different Russian region. The name ‘Valdai’ comes from the lake where the first conference was held in Veliky Novgorod.

In the last decade, over 600 experts from 47 countries have participated in the talks.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198968-sanctions-russia-wto-trade/

The central office of Saint Petersburg Commodity and Stock Exchange (RIA Novosti / Vadim Zhernov)

Russia, the world’s second-largest producer of natural gas, has launched its first auction of natural gas on Friday at the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX). It will be Europe’s largest natural gas trading post.

The project is intended to create a more competitive market for natural gas prices, which at present are more-or-less tied to oil. Now, independent producers will have access to a broader range of buyers.

The exchange will facilitate up to 35 billion cubic meters of gas annually, with Gazprom, Russia’s largest producer, maintaining the right to sell a half of that, and independent producers the remaining 17.5 billion cubic meters.

During the first trading session, Gazprom and eight independent gas producers will sell 882.6 million cubic meters of gas for November volumes. The gas will be delivered to two compressing stations – Nadym (552.6 million cubic meters) and Vyngapurovskoye (270 million cubic meters), which are connected to Russia’s gas transportation system (GTS). The supplies are not eligible for re-sale.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev endorsed the launch, saying “Today, SPIMEX begins its first natural gas trading session, and I sincerely congratulate them.”

The head of the exchange, Aleksey Rybnikov, opened trading which will run until 3pm local time (11:00 GMT). Friday’s auction launched bidding for delivery in the next month, but in the future the exchange plans to evolve into weekly and daily trading.

“Our mission was to create the conditions to ensure these auctions were executed. At the St. Petersburg Stock Exchange, we plan to start organized gas trading. This is a fairly lengthy process. Before, there were preliminary algorithms associated with trading platforms that Gazprom put together. Our task now is that these are acceptable to all,” Deputy Energy Minister Kirill Molodtsov said Thursday.

SPIMEX is the largest commodity exchange in Russia.

Igor Sechin, CEO of the world’s largest listed oil company, was appointed chairman of its board of directors in May.

SPIMEX was first registered in May 2008, receiving its official license to trade the following month. In September 2008, the exchange registered its first trades in diesel and jet fuel. It now offers spot and derivatives contracts, and covers a wide variety of petroleum products.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198804-russia-gas-trading-petersburg/

Reuters / Brendan McDermid

The eurozone may be entering another stage of recession as governments, banks and companies struggle to cut their massive debts in a period of weak economic growth, rating agency Standard Poor’s has warned.

The European currency block is entering a new stage of economic crisis, SP said in a report on Thursday.

“We think the eurozone might be entering a stubborn phase of subdued growth as deleveraging continues and the world economy weakens,” the paper reads.

READ MORE: Eurozone inflation slumps to 5yr low risking triple-dip recession

The warning followed manufacturing data which showed a slump in France in October. The Markit Flash Euro Zone Composite Output Index fell to 48.0 comparing to 48.4 in September. That is the lowest since February. A reading below 50 marks a contraction in private sector activities. France’s economy has been nicknamed the ‘sick man’ of Europe in recent months.

There were better forecasts for Europe on the whole, as its composite PMI showed an unexpected result rising to 52.2 up from 52.0 in September.

Further data released by Markit showed the private sector in Germany grew, showing promise after a series of disappointing data for the eurozone’s largest economy. The country’s flash composite PMI for October grew to 54.3 from 54.1 last month.

READ MORE:German economy in ‘choppy waters’, as growth forecast slashed to 1.2%

Earlier this month SP revised its outlook on France’s long-term sovereign rating to negative and cut Finland’s rating to AA+. Germany and Luxembourg are the only countries of the eurozone left with AAA ratings.

The agency believes a large overhang of debt is one of the main impediments to a more visible recovery. It says that the origins of the eurozone crisis were not public prodigality and budget deficits, but excessive private sector borrowing from external sources.

“Only after public and private debt levels are back to their appropriate levels will, we believe, the national savings rates moderate and demand and growth return,” SP credit analyst Moritz Kraemer says.

He believes another issue lies beneath a controversial program known as Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT). In 2012 the European Central Bank promised to buy the debt of stressed countries under the program. It hasn’t currently activated OMT, but it has been credited with calming markets.

Experts believe stabilizing macroeconomic conditions, monetary and fiscal accommodation can open the way for microeconomic reforms, which can contribute to sustainable growth and development.

These reforms can include amendments to the tax code, labor market institutions, cutting red tape, introducing competition into sheltered sectors, pension reforms, and education, among others. None of these reforms are on the duty list of the European Central Bank or the European Commission. These are responsibilities of national parliaments and require national leadership as well as ownership.

“How governments react to the current volatility and economic slowdown will be important determinants for the eurozone’s future direction,” Mr. Kraemer said.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198620-eurozone-crisis-sp-over/

Widows, who have been abandoned by their families, light sparklers after offering prayers on the banks of the river Yamuna as part of Diwali celebrations organised by non-governmental organisation Sulabh International in Vrindavan, in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh October 21, 2014 (Reuters / Ahmad Masood)

India will be glistening with gold in the next few days, as millions celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights. The holiday has pushed up demand for gold. In September the country imported $3.75 billion worth of gold jewelry in preparation.

Diwali, known as the festival of lights, is a five-day celebration with fireworks, candles, sparklers, and other lighting displays by millions of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world. The first day this year is October 23, and it usually falls between the last two weeks of October and the first two of November.

During the five-day festival, people dress in their best new clothes, and of course, gold jewelry. Nearly 20 percent of annual jewelry sales are attributed to the holiday.

India imported $3.75 billion worth of gold in September, compared to $682.5 million during the same period last year, a more than 450 percent increase. The massive increase is in part due to a government crackdown on smuggling.

“Demand in India has noticeably strengthened ahead of this year’s Diwali, especially after gold prices traded around the year’s lows during the month or so before this key festival,” UBS analyst Joni Teves told Forbes.

Low prices are also hiking demand. On Thursday, gold was trading at $1,243.90 per ounce.

Last year the Indian government introduced limits on importing gold and oil to help balance the country’s trade deficit, which is the world’s third largest.

High demand for gold will likely continue to be strong in India after the festival as the wedding season runs through February.

The World Gold Council forecasts India will import 850 to 950 tons of gold in 2014.

The surge of gold buying in the months leading up to the festival have pushed up the country’s trade deficit, which stands at 1.7 percent of the more than $2 trillion economy.

India’s importing habit has not only driven up the country’s current account deficit but also been a factor in the plummeting rupee.

India’s central bankers have been buying up gold as a hedge against currency inflation. Between April and August 2014, India imported $9.6 billion in gold bars, according to the country’s Gems and Jewelry Export Council.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198540-percent-gold-surge-india-diwali/

RIA Novosti / Alexandr Kryazhev

Contraband pork has been smuggled into Russia from the EU under the guise of chewing gum, frozen juice and mushrooms, Russia’s food safety regulator has reported. Pork imports from Europe have been banned since an outbreak of swine fever in January.

Rosselkhoznadzor reported 360 tons of illegal pork has arrived from Brazil, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands and Belgium, with the Netherlands being the second largest source of contraband.

“They are party to the EU Customs Union, and so the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is directly responsible for the contents of the containers. As we can see, the EFSA has no control, and even facilitates, smuggling,” the head of Rosselkhoznadzor, Sergey Dankvert, told the TASS news agency.

“The Netherlands, for example, declared the goods as frozen mushrooms, jams, and marmalade,” Dankvert is quoted as saying.

This is the second instance of pork smuggling that Rosselkhoznadzor has discovered in the last month. On October 13, the agency found that more than 60 tons of German and Dutch pork entered Russia labeled as mushrooms from China.

Rosselkhoznadzor began investigating the questionable cargo arriving at the Belarus border along with the Federal Customs Service (FTS) last month.

In January Moscow banned live pigs and pork products coming from the European Union after four isolated cases of African swine fever were discovered in Poland and Lithuania.

In 2013, Russia imported €1.4 billion worth of pork from Europe. European pig farmers are poised to lose billions of euro from Russia’s embargo against pork, which preceded the August food ban against all produce from the US, EU, Australia, Japan, and Canada.

The losses vary across the union. Danish pig farmers; for example, expect to lose $680 million this year from Russia’s food embargo, whereas Germany only expects to lose €40 million on pork exports to Russia.

Ukraine’s decision to sign the European Trade Association Agreement puts the Russian economy at risk, because a wide-open trade corridor and a flood of European goods can devalue local markets.

On Tuesday, the same agency banned fruit and vegetable products originating from Ukraine.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198412-eupork/

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak (RIA Novosti / Grigory Sysoev)

Russia is refusing to agree to payment options proposed by the EU, calling them a hidden form of credit. Kiev has less than a week to find the money for Russian gas, ahead of the next round of negotiations on October 29.

Moscow won’t accept any of the payment plans proposed so far by the European Commission, Russia’s Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak said Wednesday at a National oil and gas forum in Moscow.

One of the options put forward by the European Commission is that it could advance money to Ukraine for transit of Russian gas through to March. Novak says that this would in fact be a loan to Ukraine’s Naftogaz which the company will use to pay for Russian deliveries in November and December.

READ MORE:Ukraine’s multibillion-dollar gas debt: Who pays?

“Of course we can’t accept this, because this is another Naftogaz loan and it contradicts Russia’s stance that the country had earlier voiced. The whole idea turns into Gazprom financing gas transit, that’s why we don’t accept it,” Novak said.

The other alternative proposed by Europe would mean that French company GDF Suez will become an intermediary for supplies of Russian gas to Ukraine. The company says it is ready to purchase Russian gas and then resell it to Naftogaz.

“The question is where Ukraine is going to get financial sources to buy gas from an intermediary. If they [GDF – Ed.] are ready to offer credit to Ukraine, then why don’t they give credit to Naftogaz for it to purchase gas from Gazprom?” he asked.

Such an option would mean changes to the transit terms in the 2009 contract, which Russia strongly rejects. “The contract on gas transit was signed in 2009 and is valid to 2019. The Russian Federation and Gazprom are not going to change the system and introduce any alterations,” Novak concluded.

Russia, EU and Ukraine held trilateral talks on Tuesday in Brussels. All three parties confirmed Kiev will pay $385 per 1,000 cubic meters through to the end of March. The terms of the current deliveries stipulate that Ukraine pays off the accumulated debt for November and December of 2013 which amounts to $1.45 billion.

READ MORE: Ukraine and Russia agree on $385 gas price for winter

Gazprom estimates Ukraine’s total debt at $5.2 billion from November 2013 to June 2014. Naftogaz disagrees with the figures and has taken the case to the arbitration tribunal in Stockholm, trying to have the figure reduced. A repayment of $3.1 billion has been agreed to be made by the end of the year, and was worked out using the price of $268 by Naftogaz.

“We agreed that $3.1 billion will be discharged this year. The first tranche has to be paid off before the resumption of gas shipments and the second one, in the amount of $1.65 billion, by the end of the year. The shipments will be resumed only in this case,” Novak concluded.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198460-russia-gas-ukraine-loan/

RIA Novosti/Vladimir Trefilov

Russia’s currency has taken a significant 20 percent plunge this year against the dollar and euro, but analysts are confident that Russia’s sturdy stash of foreign reserves and miniscule external debt make the ruble one of the ‘most stable’ currencies.

Russia’s vast gold and foreign currency reserves will help weather the ruble’s rough patch. At more than $450 billion, they are the third largest reserves in the world.

“We believe that the fundamental factors that determine the value of our currency were unchanged. Fundamentally the balance of our budget, the absence of significant external debt of our state. Precisely because of this ruble is one of the most stable currencies,” Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia, Mikhail Sukhov, told TASS Wednesday.

The Central Bank has already spent more than $10 billion in October to stymie the ruble’s fall, and $50 billion since the beginning of the year. However, the bank has signaled it won’t continue to prop up the ruble with billions more.

READ MORE: 6 useful things you need to know about the rapid descent of Russian ruble

The ruble has lost more 20 percent against the dollar since January, which caused a flurry of panic over the future of the Russian economy, especially amid political risks brought on by the conflict in Ukraine, sanctions, ISIS, and lower oil prices.

“Today, pricing on foreign exchange markets have significant ‘political risk’, the impact cannot be ignored. However, there are more basic reasons for the weakening ruble; appreciation of the dollar against key currencies on world markets, a strengthening US economy, and the expectation of a policy shift at the US Federal Reserve, lower oil prices, and local factors such as inflation and high foreign debt payments,” Alexander Ovchinnikov , chief analyst at RusRating, told RT.

Ovchinnikov says not to panic, especially since Russia has put away enough capital for a financial storm.

Russia’s foreign debt is slightly less than $721 billion as of July 2014, the most recent data available on the Central Bank’s website. The reason is simple; Russia doesn’t issue very many bonds on international capital markets.

The US, by comparison, has more than $17.7 trillion in external debt, which makes its currency vulnerable should any big bond holder decide to cash in and suddenly sell.

Sanction end in sight

Russia’s banks are facing a dollar crunch being locked out of foreign capital markets due to sanctions. The Central Bank predicts that the peak of foreign debt payments will occur in the second quarter of 2015, when in their best case scenario, the sanctions will already be lifted. Then Russian banks won’t have any problems paying off their external debt.

Ovchinnikov forecasts that by this time, the “political premium” will be gone, and Russia’s domestic market will be under less pressure.

“In the event that foreign markets remained closed in 2015, inflation pressure and the Central Bank’s transition to a free-floating exchange rate on foreign markets will support further weakening of the ruble.”

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198252-ruble-stable-currency-central-bank/

Reuters/Rich-Joseph Facun

Canada says it may impose import duties on US-produced goods ranging from California wine to ketchup after a WTO ruling that US labeling did not meet international standards.

Canada has published a list of 38 American products that can potentially become subject to additional retaliatory tariffs. The list includes cattle and hogs, as well as a number of symbolic products such as California wine, Vermont maple syrup, Florida orange juice, ketchup and breakfast cereal.

The WTO ruled for the third time on Monday that the US country of origin labeling program known as COOL discriminated against Canada and Mexico. It said the US paid less attention to processing beef and pork imported from these countries, which is contrary to the rules of international trade.

The COOL policy means that only animals which were born, raised and slaughtered in the US could be given the label of US origin.

This means that meat packages should have a label saying something like “Born, raised and slaughtered in the US” or “Born and raised in Canada, slaughtered in the US.”

Both Canada and Mexico claim they are losing money because the US ignores the requirements. Non- compliance since 2009 has led to a decrease in pig and cattle exports from Canada.

In 2012 the COOL policy was amended, but both Canada and Mexico insist it remains discriminatory against their livestock and hurt their competitiveness with meats produced in the United States.

“The amended COOL increases the original COOL measure’s detrimental impact on the competitive opportunities of imported livestock in the U.S. market, because it necessitates increased segregation of meat and livestock according to origin; entails a higher record-keeping burden; and increases the original COOL measure’s incentive to choose domestic over imported livestock,” the WTO said in its decision.

Canada’s International Trade Minister Ed Fast told The Canadian Press that it undermines North American supply chains and costs the Canadian meat industries about $1 billion a year.

If WTO Appeals Organization doesn’t uphold their claim, Mexico and Canada can ask the organization to allow them to impose certain trade sanctions on the United States. Both countries have asked the US change the rules, otherwise they are ready to take countermeasures against US exports.

The US said that the best way to solve the problem is through a negotiated settlement, which would likely require Congress to change labeling rules. Canada has rejected the idea.

The US Chamber of Commerce, and the National Association of Manufacturers has said the rules should be immediately revised. American pork producers are lobbying Congress to fix the current rules saying they can’t afford to sort, label and store meat from Canada differently than meat from domestic animals. In general, meat producers want to see the labeling policy reconsidered.

If Washington doesn’t comply with the WTO COOL policy, the federal government of Canada would consider imposing retaliatory tariffs measures on a number of US goods by next year.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198228-canada-us-wto-meat/

Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenko

Ukraine plans to buy $770 million worth of gas (2 billion cubic meters) from Russia this winter to keep the heat on, but before that, they must pay off $1.45 billion in debt. The question is: who is going to pay the bill?

All three parties, Russia, the EU, and Ukraine met in Brussels on Tuesday and confirmed Kiev will pay $385 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian supplied gas through the end of March. Before Ukraine can start purchasing gas, they need to pay off $1.45 billion in debt.

“There’s one obstacle: Ukraine failed to pay for Russian-supplied gas for seven months,” Oettinger said Tuesday. It will be difficult for Ukraine to find a benefactor, since, as Oettinger pointed out, its credit history is less than stellar. The economy is in ruin and may already need extra IMF money to stay afloat.

READ MORE: Ukraine’s economy contracts 4 times faster in Q2, losing 4.7%

So where should Ukraine get the money from?

1. EU Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger suggests the EU become a broker between Ukraine and Russia.

“If Naftogaz can’t pay, another European company may buy Russian gas and then resell it.”

“It is also possible that the Russian gas transit tariff can be used as gas payments,” Oettinger said.Russia sends more than 80 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe through Ukraine, and each entry/exit point has a different tariff, ranging from $14 to $45 per 1,000 cubic meters. The question of payment for Russian gas remains key, according to Oettinger.

2. The CEO of Gazprom, Aleksey Miller, is not pleased with Oettinger’s cavalier suggestion and said only Gazprom can sell Ukraine Russian gas, not Europe.

“We will not sell gas to Ukraine through a third party.”

Miller said Europe cannot resell gas to Ukraine, since all gas is supplied under specific contracts with each country, and enters at different delivery points.

Russia turned off gas supplies to Ukraine in June over a pricing dispute and the debt, and is demanding repayment of at least $3.1 billion before deliveries are resumed.

3. Ukraine’s Energy Minister Yuri Prodan says they are ready to pay for future gas, but not for the $3.1 they owe Gazprom.

“We are ready to make an advance payment, but we haven’t yet settled the way to pay our $3.1 billion debt.”

Naftogaz, Ukraine’s national oil and gas company, owes Gazprom $4.5 billion in total, at least $3.1 billion before the new year, and $1.45 billion before they can start buying gas again.

4. Either way, Russia wants Europe to come up with the cash, and soon, says Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak.

“Possible sources include guarantees from first-class European banks, bridging loans, funds from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, or the European Commission.”

Novak says Kiev will purchase 2 billion cubic meters of gas, or $770 million worth from Russia, as well as another 2 billion from neighboring European states.

“If Europe gives them the money, then gas will flow,” Novak said at an energy forum in Moscow Wednesday.

The last stumbling block in the negotiations is simply a matter of money. According to Novak, the deal could have been signed on Tuesday if Kiev could show they are financially solvent enough to pay for future deliveries and debt.

5. Vladimir Putin says Russia has given Ukraine enough financial cushion over the years, and now its Europe’s turn.

“In this situation, our European partners must give Ukraine a shoulder to lean on, and help.”

6. So far gas to Europe is still flowing, but the shut offs in 2006 and 2009 over Ukraine’s debt have Angela Merkel calling for collective action.

“Everyone must contribute.”

Including Slovakia, the Chancellor said after a meeting in Bratislava. Germany depends on Russian gas for 25 percent of its energy needs, and Slovakia gets more than 80 percent of its natural gas from Russia. Slovakia has been pumping reverse flows to Ukraine to make up for the Russian shortage, and may pump another 1-2 billion cubic meters this winter, according to Prodan.

Both Russian energy officials and Gazprom heads have warned against the illegality of reverse flows, as they violate Gazprom contracts, which don’t allow a country to re-export gas.

7. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is looking right back at Merkel for the money.

“We have several options, ranging from International Monetary Fund finance to international financial organizations that could support the deficit of Naftogaz.”

The next meeting is scheduled for October 29 and EU Energy Minister Gunther Oettinger expects an agreement to be inked.

Article source: http://rt.com/business/198080-who-pay-ukraine-gas-debt/