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Monday, March 24, 2008

More Economic Freedom

The lower house of Russia's parliament, the Duma, passed legislation Friday limiting the ability of foreigners to invest in industrial sectors considered as strategic. Colin McCullough reports for VOA from Moscow this came shortly after the Russian government announced the arrest of two Russian-Americans on charges of industrial espionage.

The Duma passed a bill restricting foreign investment in 42 sectors labeled strategic, including the manufacture and sale of military hardware, the nuclear industry, the extraction of mineral resources and mass media.

The bill says that any foreign private investor wanting to buy more than a 50 percent share of a company in any of the designated sectors will need approval from a commission composed of economic and security officials.

Foreign state-controlled companies will have to go through the same procedure if they want to acquire more than a 25-percent stake in a Russian company on the list.

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The law passed to "protect" the Russian economy looks as if it will continue to limit it. The economy already scored low in The Heritage Foundation's ratings posted earlier, and these numbers may continue to go down now that this law is going into effect. By limiting foreign investments into its economy Russia may very well be hindering its growth.

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