| Chevron looks to acquire Yukos
MOSCOW Chevron Corp. wants to purchase disputed assets of OAO Yukos, a bankruptcy official said Friday, raising the prospect of a U.S. company participating in the liquidation of a business that drew protest from the White House and rattled investor confidence in Russia. While it's unlikely a foreign corporation will be allowed to buy strategic production and refining assets already earmarked for Kremlin-backed monopolies, the expression of interest underscores the powerful pull of the world's biggest oil and gas industry amid mounting global competition for energy reserves. Yukos' biggest production unit was bought three years ago by state oil group OAO Rosneft after an opaque auction. Now the company's bankruptcy supervisor is preparing for further sales: Production units with a capacity of some 470,000 barrels per day, as well as two refineries, are expected to go on the block in an auction expected to be dominated by Rosneft and the state gas monopoly OAO Gazprom.
CB to quote ruble at 26.3945 rubles/$1 and 34.3419 rubles/EUR1 on ...
MOSCOW. February 8 (Interfax) - The Central Bank of Russia will quote the U.S. dollar at 26.3945 rubles/$1 on February 9, 0.41% down from the previous exchange rate. The Central Bank will quote the euro at 34.3419 rubles/EUR1, 0.21% down from the previous exchange rate, the bank's Foreign and Public Relations Department told Interfax. [RU ASIA EUROPE EEU EMRG FRX CEN EUR] .
G7 urges adjustment of Chinese exchange rate
ESSEN, Germany -- Finance ministers and central bank chiefs from the Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations on Saturday called for an adjustment of the Chinese exchange rate. They made the remarks in a statement released after their meeting that opened on late Friday. The meeting focused on the development of capital markets in emerging market economies and other world economic issues. The finance ministers and chief bankers said exchange rates should reflect economic fundamentals. In emerging markets with large and growing current account surpluses, especially in China, it is desirable that their effective exchange rates move so that necessary adjustments will occur, the statement said. The ministers from G-7, which comprises the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, met with their counterparts from the five developing nations - China, Mexico, South Africa, India and Brazil.
Value of yen rises as Europe decries `unfair' low value
The yen snapped two days of losses against the US dollar on speculation European policy makers will voice concern that Japan's currency is too cheap, prompting traders to reverse record bets on declines. The currency also rose to a seven-day high against the euro on signs the G7 will debate the yen at a meeting on Friday and Saturday. Data released last Friday by the Washington-based Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed traders on Jan. 30 had 173,005 positions that profit from a weaker yen. "We see the yen supported this week ahead of the G7 meeting as the market expects the exchange rate will be discussed," Antje Praefcke, a currency strategist at Commerzbank AG, said in Frankfurt. The yen advanced to 120.65 against the US dollar in London, from 121.13 late in New York on Feb.
Yen set to sidestep harsh treatment at Essen G7
The G7 industrial powers were set to repeat appeals for flexible exchange rates and warn again against currency volatility but stop short of singling out the sliding yen for overt criticism at a meeting on Saturday. A G7 source told Reuters a communiqué to be published at the end of talks in the industrial German city of Essen was expected to be similar to one issued last September in Singapore as far as guidance to currency markets was concerned. "The wording on exchange rates in the final communiqué will be similar to that used in Singapore," the source said on condition of anonymity. In Singapore, the G7 urged China, which still controls the yuan exchange rate strictly, to move towards greater currency flexibility in its official communiqué but did not single out the yen, which was sliding then and continues to do so.
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