Publications in press

Construction of a multi-functional commercial and residential complex including an intercity bus terminal, park-and-ride lots, and shopping center is to begin soon in the northwest of St. Petersburg by STEP Construction Group and affiliated companies.

MOSCOW - Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday urged the United States to delay deployment of elements of a planned missile-defense system in Europe and called on NATO to halt its eastward expansion.

While mushrooming apartment blocks on the city's outskirts and endless restorations of historic buildings in the center could give the impression that nowhere is developing faster than St. Petersburg, its real estate market still lags behind Moscow's, experts say.

While the speed with which new apartment blocks seem to mushroom on the outskirts of the city and the endless restoration of historic facades around the city center could give the impression that nowhere is developing faster than St. Petersburg, the city's real estate market still lags far behind that of the capital, according to experts.

In 2007 the rates of new retail space delivery dropped in St Petersburg by more than half compared to 2006.

Marine Facade Managing Company has announced sales of yet-to-be-reclaimed lands in the western part of the Vassilievsky Island.

The largest increase in elite real estate prices (33.7 percent) was reported in Bulgaria, while Singapore followed at 31.3 percent. Russia holds the third place with 30 percent growth, followed by Montenegro (26 percent), Poland (22.4 percent) and Hong Kong (22.3 percent).

The Finnish retailer SOK plans to open and develop its Prisma supermarkets in St. Petersburg until it occupies 15-17 percent of the local retail market by opening about 20 supermarkets over the next five years.

ST. PETERSBURG -Arsenal, one of the oldest industrial enterprises in St. Petersburg, is planning to turn its former factory into a multifunctional business center in a project that will cost $100 million to $150 million,