Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin has called on the government to sell its stake Novorossiisk Commercial Sea Port on the Black Sea to state-owned oil firm Rosneft, bypassing the normal privatisation service, reports the Moscow Times. In a letter to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Mr Sechin reportedly argued that a 25 per cent blocking stake in the port should be transferred directly to Rosneft rather than auctioned off in…

Northeast China’s Suifenhe checkpoint, on Sino-Russian border, recorded a trade value of US$2.34 billion in 2011, US$2.33 billion was contributed by Sino-Russian trade, Xinhua reports. The checkpoint’s exports were mainly garment and accessories, electrical and mechanical products, agricultural products and bags, valued at $712 million, 69.5 per cent of the export value total. Imports were mainly lumber, iron ore and fertiliser, valued at $1.3 billion, 96.4 per cent of the…

The Big Port of St Petersburg has posted a 22.5 per cent year-on-year increase in container volume to 2,365,174 TEU in 2011, reports the Baltic Transport Journal. General cargo was up 13.2 per cent to 36.8 million tonnes in the same period, but dry bulk was down 19.5 per cent to 7.42 million tonnes and liquid bulk fell 3.7 per cent to 15.7 million tonnes. Overall, St Petersburg enjoyed a…