Russian businessman and billionaire Oleg Deripaska has acquired Solaria Hotel in the Austrian ski resort-village Lech am Arlberg. Deripaska plans to reconstruct the hotel and to open it in autumn 2008.

Today the auto giant Toyota Motor Corp has opened its first plant in St. Petersburg, Russia. It is the first plant in Russia which will produce premium-class cars.

The air transport company ExecuJet Aviation Group intends to sell Russia 20-30 newest supersonic airliners Aerion Supersonic Business Jet. Each airliner has been preliminary estimated at $US80 million.

The German company Alfred Ritter stops production of its chocolate in Russia. Since 2008 all the chocolate is to be imported from German.

St. Petersburg is turning into a real Russian Detroit. Hyundai has decided to build a car plant in the northern capital of Russia. It is the 5th car manufacturing giant coming to the city after Toyota, Nissan, General Motors and Suzuki.

Nearly 2.500 illegal migrants have been detained in Moscow within the last three days in the course of the operation “Illegal Migrant” that was organized by the migration service of Russia.

The Russian authorities plan to impose a moratorium on crabbing in some zones of the Russian Far East, which may inflict serious damage to the economy of Vakkanay, the northern port on Japanese Hokkaido.

The first outlets are to appear in Moscow and St Petersburg, then, Costa Coffee stores will expand to other Russian regions.

Following the successful deal concluded by AvtoVaz and Renault, another Russian car-manufacturer is considering cooperation with a foreign company.

Today, 12 December, the first international small business festival opens in Moscow.