Russian Firms To Borrow $11Bln Abroad in 2005
|
|
Saturday, September 6, 2008 14:24 | dictionary | keyboard | login | register | online | |
|
|
Russian Firms To Borrow $11Bln Abroad in 2005
|
|
| Home |  |
News |  |
Business |  |
Shop | |
Classifieds | |
Fun | |
Chat | |
Forum | |
America |  |
| • | News |
|
|
|
Russian Firms To Borrow $11Bln Abroad in 2005
23 Nov 2004  printer version
viewed (525)
raiting (-11/13) Russian companies next year may boost borrowing from foreign banks by as much as a third as oil prices near records and spur economic growth and profits, according to Citigroup, the top arranger of Russian loans this year. Russian businesses have borrowed $9 billion from foreign banks this year, 22 percent more than in 2003, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The total may rise by as much as 30 percent in 2005, said Steven Fisher, managing director of the Russia and CIS corporate banking unit at Citigroup in Moscow. "We've had a great year," Fisher said in an interview at the bank's Moscow offices. "The volume of loans went up quite a bit" and "I think it will be bigger next year." Citigroup had a 10.1 percent share of the Russian loan market this year, according to Bloomberg data. Along with ABN AMRO and BNP Paribas, the New York-based bank has boosted lending to Russian companies as the economy expanded for a sixth year, fueled by soaring commodity prices. Lending rose even as a tax dispute between the government and Yukos escalated, threatening to push Russia's second-largest oil producer into bankruptcy. Russia's increasing control over the oil and gas industry may hurt the credit ratings of privately owned companies because of a higher "risk of government intervention," Standard & Poor's said last month. The government is merging Gazprom, the world's largest natural gas producer, with state-owned oil producer Rosneft. High energy prices will continue to underpin economic growth, countering the negative impact of rising U.S. interest rates, and offering opportunities for bank lending, said Alexis Rodzianko, regional head and chief executive officer of Frankfurt-based Deutsche Bank in Russia. "I expect growth to continue," Rodzianko said of the rising loan volumes. "The major factor there is continued high oil prices, which continue to support Russia's economy." Deutsche Bank was ninth by volume of syndicated loans to Russian companies this year, according to Bloomberg data. Gazprom said last month it will hire Deutsche Bank as a consultant to its new oil unit. The gas producer also hired Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein to advise it on the merger, and Citigroup for independent opinions on the combination. "The clients we work with are actually doing better and better financially," Citigroup's Fisher said. "This is not just the natural resource companies, but companies in the telecom sector and other consumer sectors." Russian corporate profits are soaring. Siberia-based Surgutneftegaz, the nation's fourth-biggest oil producer, reported that nine-month profit jumped 56 percent. Moscow-based Sistema, which owns assets from telecommunications to finance, reported that first-half net income rose 85 percent. Lending to Russia-based companies may increase as foreign direct investment increases and subsidiaries of foreign companies begin to borrow to fund local operations, Deutsche Bank's Rodzianko said. "I expect to see a major contribution to the demand for that product to come from companies operating inside Russia," he said. "The growth of multinational investment in Russia is just beginning to pick up its pace. I would expect next year to be a much busier year than this year." Last month, Citigroup and BNP Paribas coordinated an $800 million loan to Russian Aluminum, or RusAl, with nine other banks, the largest to date for a Russian metals company. Earlier Bloomberg reported that The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said it plans to increase investments in Russia in 2005 and 2006, making its russian investment worth $1.6 Billion dollars in 2005. Source: http://www.bloomberg.com Other articles in Business, Finance:  Readers' CommentsNo comments Add your commentary |
|
|
Advertise on RusUSA.com Contact: Site search Search internet Site map |
|
|
©2008 LCube. All rights reserved.
RusUSA.com - Russian America.
Terms of Use
|
|
