Today in Russian Business – July 28, 2008

Russian authorities may apply an American racketeering law in a Moscow court in their attempt to recover billions of dollars in damages from the Bank of New York Mellon. A decision on the case is to be made today. Mechel, the company accused by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of price-fixing, says it is ready to cooperate with the government. “Investors confidence was shaken if not shattered.” German auto giant Daimler is in talks to buy a 42% stake in truck maker KamAZ in a potential deal valued at $1.7 billion. Russian automotive group Gaz hopes to create a $1 billion joint venture with General Motors but is also looking at Daimler as a partner. Russia’s Federal Road Agency is concerned that a bridge intended to demonstrate the country’s economic revival to a 2012 summit will not be built in time. The Guardian is running a case study of a successful foreign business operating in Russia. Alisher Usmanov’s Gallagher Holdings will buy a 27% stake in Strike Resources, an Australian company seeking to develop a $2.3 billion iron ore mine in Peru. Billionaire Nikolai Tsvetkov plans to build a $300 million film and television studio outside Moscow. Roman Abramovich has increased his stake in Russia-focused miner Highland Gold.