Sixty Russian officials linked to the pretrial death of Hermitage Capital lawyer Sergei Magnitsky may be banned from visiting Canada and face financial sanctions in the country, Magnitsky's supporters said Tuesday. The Canadian parliament's international human rights subcommittee discussed the move at a hearing attended by Hermitage head William Browder last week, said a statement published on the " Law and Order in Russia " blog, which is maintained by Magnitsky's supporters.

Russia ranked 65th among 169 countries, beating Kazakhstan but losing to Albania, in a UN human development report consisting of data on life expectancy, standard of living and other factors. “Extremely high male adult mortality is probably one of the main barriers to human development,” Vladimir Echenique, deputy dean of the economics department at Moscow State University, said at Tuesday's presentation of the Russian edition of the report by the United Nations Development Program.

Petroneft Resources, an Irish oil producer and explorer focused on Russia, said Tuesday that it discovered another oil deposit near a field already under production in the Tomsk region. Petroneft shares closed up more than 8 percent at 59.5 pence in London. The stock price has almost tripled this year. The Arbuzovskaya well is the first of a five-well exploration program that aims to double the company’s proven and probable reserve base in the next year, the company said. (Bloomberg)

Caspian gas exports may more than triple in the next decade, allowing consumers in Europe and China to diversify supply, the International Energy Agency said Tuesday. Producers including Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan will export almost 100 billion cubic meters of gas in 2020, compared with less than 30 bcm last year, the Paris-based agency said in its World Energy Outlook.

Gas producer Novatek rose to a record high on Tuesday, after the board approved the purchase of a controlling stake in two West Siberian gas projects. Shares jumped by 6 percent to 278.51 rubles at the close in Moscow. Novatek agreed Monday to buy a 51 percent stake in Sibneftegas, which holds licenses for the Beregovy, Khadyryakhinsky, Pyreiny and Zapadno-Zapolyarnoye fields in the Yamal-Nenets autonomous district.

Federation Council Speaker Sergei Mironov is on a collision course with the Kremlin after he opposed United Russia-backed reforms for the upper house of parliament and demanded the direct election of its members. In an article published Tuesday in Vedomosti and on his web site, Mironov argued that electing senators by popular vote is the best of all models. "I have always, from my first day of work in the council, adhered to this position," he wrote.

Azarov attending a session during the Vienna Economic Forum on Monday. Herwig Prammer VIENNA — After a terrible 2009, Ukraine's economy will grow 5 percent this year, higher than earlier government predictions, and then another 5 to 10 percent in 2011, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said in an interview. "The growth in GDP will be about 5 percent this year. Next year the minimal growth we see is 5 percent.

Migrant workers make Russia one of the world's largest cash exporters, according to a World Bank report released Tuesday. The Migration and Remittances Factbook 2011 ranked Russia fourth for 2009 among countries whose foreign residents transfer money abroad, with $18.6 billion leaving its borders. The United States came in first, followed by Saudi Arabia and Switzerland. Russia came in 19th among remittance-receiving countries, taking in $5.6 billion.

Vyacheslav Ilyumzhinov, the elder brother of former Kalmykia leader Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, has been appointed first deputy prime minister of the republic. The decision was made by Kalmykia’s new leader, Alexei Orlov, and announced on his web site Monday. Orlov offered a government post to Kirsan Ilyumzhinov in October, but the former leader, who had ruled the republic from 1993 to last month and also heads the World Chess Federation, declined.

A new monument to science pioneers unveiled in Bryansk turned out to be an embarrassment after it got the names of two prominent scientists wrong, the local news web site Nashbryansk.ru reported Monday.

Metalloinvest, the iron-ore business led by billionaire Alisher Usmanov, announced results on Monday that include a 47 percent jump in first-half profit on prices and output. The company also overtook Brazilian competitor Vale as the holder of the largest reserves, chief executive Eduard Potapov said. An audit showed Metalloinvest’s reserves at 14.8 billion tons, Potapov said.

Perhaps the one positive aspect of the vicious beating of Kommersant journalist Oleg Kashin on Saturday is that the list of suspects is confined to a small number of people — just like an Agatha Christie novel. The first suspect is Khimki Mayor Vladimir Strelchenko. (He denies any role in the matter.) Sooner or later, Strelchenko’s enemies get their heads bashed in.

BERLIN — European Union Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said in an interview after a Moscow trip that close ties with supplier Russia would avert any new winter gas supply crisis. Preparations have been taken to avoid a gas transit crisis as seen in January 2009, he said. "There are no signs of a crisis.

Protesters holding a portrait of Oleg Kashin outside Kiev's Russian Embassy on Tuesday. Gleb Garanich Outrage over the gruesome weekend beating of Kommersant reporter Oleg Kashin grew as the U.S. State Department and Amnesty International called for justice — and the authorities assigned their best investigators to the case. Prominent reporter and blogger Kashin, 30, was beaten with a metal rod near his apartment building in downtown Moscow early Saturday.

Sberbank acquired almost 75 percent in lottery company Sportloto, the state-controlled bank said Tuesday in a statement, without giving the price. Sportloto, previously controlled by businessman Oleg Boiko’s Finstar Financial Group, signed a contract with the government to operate 12 lotteries supporting the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the company said Oct. 5. Sales under Sportloto’s seven-year license may exceed 30.6 billion rubles ($998 million), it said. (Bloomberg)