MasterCard stays in Russia 'in any case', while Visa hopes for a productive comprise with Russian authorities, the representatives of the companies said on Friday.

Japanese payment system (JCB) has started certain moves to enter the Russian market and in the near future may submit the necessary paperwork to the Russian Central Bank, Russian newspaper Kommersant reported Monday.

The World Trade Organization is facing a possible collapse if the US and the EU fall through with their plans to impose economic sanctions against Russia, said a senior Russian official.

Rosneft and Alstom have signed an agreement to expand cooperation in the energy sector, marking a new page in the relationship between the two giants.

The world's major Investment banks have downgraded their projections on Mechel and Evraz securities.

Russia expects to sign an historic deal with China on natural gas supplies that will help the country to diversify its exports.

Retail deposits at Bank Rossiya plunged 35 percent within just one month, shrinking from almost 37 billion roubles to under 24 billion roubles.

The Bank of Russia, the national Central Bank, has generated half as much revenue in 2013 as in the year before, says RIA-Novosti.

Trade between the EU and Russia fell sharply in 1Q 2014, echoing a sour political relationship between Moscow and Brussels split over the Ukraine crisis.

Mechel, Russia’s steel and metal giant, has warned investors of growing default risks if the Ukraine crisis spirals out of control, says the news agency Itar-Tass.