Today in Russian Business – July 6, 2012

Cyprus’s Moscow-leaning president has emphasized his links to the Kremlin whilst defending his decision to seek bailout funds from both the EU and his Russian partners.  Ben Aris examines the signs that Russia’s economy is in danger of overheating.  Was the slowdown in capital flight from Russia during the second quarter a sign of nascent confidence in the investment climate?  Or did it have more to do with the drop in oil prices? wonders the FT.  Russian consumers were, it would seem, more optimistic in that same period than in any time in almost four years.  Bloomberg reports on Ural Mining & Metallurgical Co’s plans to establish a $675 million steel mill in the oil-rich Tyumen region in the first quarter of next year.  Meanwhile, the closure of the controversial Baikalsk Pulp and Paper mill is apparently on the cards.  Moscow Deputy Mayor Andrei Sharonov explains to the Moscow Times that the capital’s dismal placing in the rankings of 30 Russian cities in which to do business (last place) is to do with excessive bureaucracy.  The central office of real estate firm Inkom has been subject to a police raid in connection with an investigation into the theft of $17 million at formerly city-owned Bank of Moscow.