| Gas Industry 1991-2000
For the last 10 years, the gas industry has lived as if it were a state within the state. The government was too loyal to the gas monopolist, and even its privatization was conducted in the interests of the company's management. However, such benevolence did not come without a price: Gazprom regularly provided funds to patch up holes in the state budget and finance various political campaigns.
1991
A plan was elaborated to incorporate the gas infrastructure of Russia, the Ukraine and Belarus into one system. The state gas concern (GTK) Gazprom hoped to retain control over the most important parts of its vast property in the former USSR. Of the most significance was the Soviet gas transportation system. However, the plan failed, and Gazprom remained an exclusively Russian enterprise.
Partial Eclipse: LDK Solar Highlights China Stocks' Risk
Xiaofeng "Light" Peng, a 32-year-old billionaire, was recently ranked as the sixth-richest person in China. He piled up much of his wealth in the past few months, as his New York Stock Exchange-listed solar-wafer manufacturer, LDK Solar Co., caught investors' fancy. Mr. Peng hit an investment sweet spot: Investors are clamoring not only for Chinese stocks, but also alternative-energy stocks amid soaring oil prices. .
ETFs Stoke Investors' Gold Fever
Gold's place in the financial system dates back centuries, but it is enjoying a modern-day renaissance, thanks in part to new vehicles that allow investors to buy and sell the precious metal as easily as a share of Google stock. The price of gold fell $3.30, or 0.4%, to $863.10 a troy ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division Friday, but that was after hitting a 28-year high earlier in the week. It is now up 43% from a year ago. Investors have been flocking to it as the outlook for more-conventional investments like stocks and bonds becomes cloudier. Analysts point to the introduction of exchange-traded funds linked to gold as a potent new catalyst for interest in the yellow metal. ETFs trade on exchanges like stocks, but their performance can be tied to almost anything, from the value of commodities to the performance of stock indexes like the S&P 500 index or the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Metals - Copper continues up on falling Shanghai stockpiles, US rate ...
Earlier, the metal hit 7,055 usd before running into profit-taking above the 7,000 usd mark. Copper prices have been heavily pressured since mid-August when the credit crunch first took hold. Prices have declined by over 15 pct due to demand outlook fears in light of a possible economic slowdown. Reduced buying from China at the beginning of the fourth quarter has been testing the theory that rapid growth in developing countries could take up the slack should the US economy falter. However, prices have taken a boost today from reports of a near 25 pct drop in Shanghai Futures Exchange monitored copper stockpiles, reigniting the prospect of increased demand out of key consumer China. Chinese demand has failed to meet expectations recently due in part to tightening credit conditions, previously high inventory levels and traders waiting for the price to dip to a more attractive level.
Soaps scrubbing old look
Procter & Gamble is looking like an innovator right now, but we will have to wait to see how good the show is and whether viewers take to the new production, Martin said, adding that the success will depend on the basics.
Its a bold experiment, but if people turn on the show and the writing is no good, then they are not going to stick around, no matter how good their production values are.
meg.james@latimes.com .
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