Kazakhstan News Roundup - June 20, 2008

news roundup

Kazakhstan News Roundup - June 20, 2008

By SRI ⋅ June 20, 2008 ⋅

energy:

Toshiba to develop, procure metals from Kazakhstan
(Reuters) - Japan’s Toshiba Corp is to sign an agreement with Kazatomprom on a partnership to develop rare metals in a bid to counter rising raw materials prices, a Japanese government source said on Friday.

Kazakh, Azeri relations linked to BTC line
(UPI) - The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline provides Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan an opportunity to make an impact in the world energy market, a lawmaker said.

Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan announce coordinated transit policy on energy resources (Azerbaijan Business Center)

Caspian Energy says Baktygaryn 703 exploration well to be plugged (Hemscott – Thomson Financial)

mineral resources:

ArcelorMittal wins in Kazakhstan tax appeal case
(Reuters) - A Kazakh court confirmed on Thursday its decision to cancel a $830 million back tax claim against ArcelorMittal’s local subsidiary, officials at the company and the Tax Committee said.

Sunkar Resources to float on AIM (Silk Road Intelligencer)

European Minerals and Lero Gold complete business combination (Marketwire)

business and economy:

Islamic financing to launch in Kazakhstan
(Silk Road Intelligencer) - Kazakhstan will launch first Islamic banking products by the end of 2008, said BTA Bank board member Georgiy Iosifyan.

Kazakhstan: grain millers are not able to export flour
(Agrimarket.info) - Almost over the whole territory of Kazakhstan grain millers report that since this week the national company “Kazakhstan temir zholy” blocked flour shipments for export, reported Eugene Gann, President of Union of Grain Processors and Bakers of Kazakhstan.

K-cell consolidates lead as penetration reaches 83 percent
(Cellular News) - The number of mobile connections in Kazakhstan reached 12.7m at the end of Q1 08, an increase of 4.7m or 58.3% year on year.

Session concerning Kazakhstan accession to WTO held in Almaty
(Kazakhstan Today) - The session concerning Kazakhstan accession to World Trade Organization (WTO) took place in Almaty, the agency reports referring to the press service of European Commission Representation in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

World Bank says fishing will return to the Aral Sea
(AP – IHT) - The people of the Aral Sea region, site of one the world’s worst ecological disasters, may soon see their economy revitalized and large-scale fishing and farming return, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Thursday.

World Bank could finance Western Europe-Western China road construction
(Interfax) - The Kazakh government and the World Bank (WB) are completing talks on financing the project for construction of the Western Europe - Western China road, Kazakh’s Prime Minister Karim Masimov said.

World Bank Group president praises prudent policies and reaffirms commitment to support growth in Kazakhstan (World Bank Group)

JSC Compass Asset Management acquires shares in Khan Resources Inc. (CNW Group)

N. Nazarbayev stands for Kazakh-Japanese economic partnership enlargement (Kazinform)

National Bank of Kazakhstan: Exchange rates June 20, 2008 (Kazinform)

Indicators – June 19, 2008
(Reuters) - Kazakhstan’s economic indicators based on data provided by the State Statistics Agency, government institutions, the central bank and exchanges.

politics:

Nazarbaev awarded with Japan’s highest order (Interfax)

society:

Forge a Unity of Purpose, Then Conquer the World
(New York Times) - “Mongol” — or, as I prefer to think of it, “Genghis Khan: The Early Years” — is a big, ponderous epic, its beautifully composed landscape shots punctuated by thundering hooves and bloody, slow-motion battle sequences.