Russian Federation GDP growth in 2005 may drop to 4.5% if there are no positive changes in the competitiveness of Russian companies. This was announced by the head of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation German Gref at a government meeting. He pointed out that the decrease in the competitiveness of Russian enterprises is evidenced by an increase in their costs.

In Poland, the police began fining local residents for dirty language used during the bright Christmas holidays. The penalty for obscene language is approximately $160. Officers from the Polish town of Elblag say they have already raised thousands of euros in a campaign to keep the Christmas spirit alive. They say the city is noticeably more peaceful as a result. The success of this venture forced the authorities of other settlements to also think about the same measures.

Federation Council (SF) of Russia at the beginning of 2005. plans to make changes to the new list of holidays. Chairman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation Sergei Mironov told reporters today. According to him, on December 27, the upper house intends to approve the law amending the Labor Code regarding the proclamation of November 4 as the Day of Military Glory and declaring it a day off. At the same time, S.

A passenger plane made an emergency landing in Kamchatka due to a fire. According to the prosecutor's office of the Kamchatka region, a Tu-154 of the Vladivostok Airlines company, operating a flight on the Petropavlovsk-Vladivostok route, took off, but a few minutes later smoke was discovered in the tail section of the plane. The crew decided to dump fuel and return to Petropavlovsk airport. The plane landed safely, none of the 80 passengers and 9 crew members were injured.

The growth of the Russian stock market at the end of 2004 will most likely be 0%, Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said today during a government meeting. At the same time, the minister clarified that in 2003. The stock market grew by 57%, and in 2002. - 37%. The minister recalled that at the beginning of 2004.

The permanent population of the Russian Federation as of November 1, 2004. amounted to 143.6 million people. Since the beginning of the year, this figure has decreased by 615.7 thousand people, or 0.43%. Such data is contained in the operational report of the Federal State Statistics Service. As noted in the report, the population decline was due to natural population decline, which in January-October 2004. decreased compared to the corresponding period in 2003. by 82.2 thousand people.

The frail one has become a criminal now. So, in Argentina, a burglar became so exhausted while robbing someone else’s house that he fell asleep right at the scene of the crime, hugging a trophy bag. This funny incident took place in the city of La Plata. The owner of the house returned to find a stranger sleeping peacefully on the sofa. Next to the uninvited guest lay a bag with her own things neatly folded. The woman armed herself with a broom and gave it a good treat to the sleeping thief.

As it became known, the federal bankruptcy court in Houston today resumed hearings in the YUKOS case. Lawyers for the plaintiff company, during the ongoing hearings, accused Gazprom of direct violation of the court's ban on participation in the auction for the sale of the company's main production asset, Yuganskneftegaz OJSC. This was reported by the radio station "Echo of Moscow" with reference to Bloomberg .

The State Duma today adopted in the first reading the presidential bill “On the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation.” This project was developed as part of strengthening anti-terrorism legislation after the tragic events in Beslan in order to involve wide circles of society in the implementation of state policy. The new bill defines the main legal and organizational issues of the formation and activities of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation.

The Russian government has not yet found an answer to the question of how to double GDP. This was announced by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov, summing up the discussion of the draft program for the socio-economic development of the Russian Federation for 2005-2008. In this regard, M.

On Christmas Eve, Hawaii experienced a real Christmas tree rush. The unfortunate natives, whose homeland is deprived of this type of vegetation due to climatic conditions, have to shell out up to $300 for a scarce tree. Last weekend, a shipment of 130 noble firs from the US state of Oregon was greeted by hundreds of people who even camped overnight in Honolulu.

The state-owned stake in the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK) in the amount of 17.81% of shares (23.76% of voting shares) was acquired at an auction by UFGIS Structured Holdings (part of the OFG group and acts in the interests of MMK) for the starting price. According to the decision of the RFBR board, the starting price for the sale of the state stake in MMK was 790 million 150 thousand dollars. The auction lasted three minutes - from 12:31 to 12:34 Moscow time.

Recently, Russia has become a world leader in the number of suicides, the Russian Courier publication reports today. And this fact itself was voiced in the report of the director of the State Scientific Center for Social and Forensic Psychiatry named after. V.P. Serbian academician T.B. Dmitrieva at the first national congress on social psychiatry. In recent years, a real wave of suicides has swept across Russia: every year 60 thousand people commit suicide.

To double GDP by 2012. annual economic growth of 7.2% is required, and until 2010. - in the amount of 9%. This was announced today by Russian Presidential Adviser on Economic Affairs Andrei Illarionov at a government meeting. At the same time, since 2003. to 2004 the average annual GDP growth was 7%. Taking this fact into account, A. Illarionov noted that now to double GDP by 2012, starting from 2005, annual GDP growth of 7.3% is required, and until 2010. - no less than 9.1%.

Rosneft acquired Baikalfinancegroup, a company that won the auction for the sale of Yuganskneftegaz on December 19. It is reported that Rosneft acquired a 100 percent stake from the former owners of Baikalfinancegroup, whose names have not been disclosed.