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Russian Court Seizes Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank Assets

FILE PHOTO: An exterior view shows an office building, which houses the Russian headquarters of Deutsche Bank, in Moscow, Russia, September 17, 2015. REUTERS/Maxim Zmeyev/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An exterior view shows an office building, which houses the Russian headquarters of Deutsche Bank, in Moscow, Russia, September 17, 2015. REUTERS/Maxim Zmeyev/File Photo
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Russian Court Seizes Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank Assets

FILE PHOTO: An exterior view shows an office building, which houses the Russian headquarters of Deutsche Bank, in Moscow, Russia, September 17, 2015. REUTERS/Maxim Zmeyev/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An exterior view shows an office building, which houses the Russian headquarters of Deutsche Bank, in Moscow, Russia, September 17, 2015. REUTERS/Maxim Zmeyev/File Photo

A Russian court has ordered that Deutsche Bank's and Commerzbank's assets, accounts, property and shares be seized in Russia as part of a lawsuit involving the German banks, court documents showed.
The banks were among the guarantor lenders under a contract for the construction of a gas processing plant in Russia with Germany's Linde, which was terminated due to Western sanctions, Reuters reported.
The lawsuits were filed by St Petersburg-based RusChemAlliance, a joint venture 50% owned by Russian gas giant Gazprom which is the operator of the project.
The St Petersburg arbitration court has barred Deutsche Bank from exercising its 100% interest in the authorized capital of its Russian subsidiary, as well as Deutsche Bank Technology Center LLC.
The court has also imposed the seizure of up to 238.6 million euros ($259 million) in securities, real estate and bank accounts of Deutsche Bank, as well as its Russian subsidiary and Deutsche Bank Technology Center.
Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt said it had already provisioned around 260 million euros for the case.
"We will need to see how this claim is implemented by the Russian courts and assess the immediate operational impact in Russia," the bank said in a statement.
The court also seized Commerzbank's assets worth 93.7 million euros ($101.85 million) as well as securities and the bank's building in central Moscow.
Commerzbank did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Russian court on Friday ordered UniCredit's assets, accounts and property, as well as shares in two subsidiaries, be seized as part of a parallel lawsuit.

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China Mulls Draft Law to Promote Private Sector Development

A Chinese national flag flutters on a financial street in Beijing. (Reuters)
A Chinese national flag flutters on a financial street in Beijing. (Reuters)
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China Mulls Draft Law to Promote Private Sector Development

A Chinese national flag flutters on a financial street in Beijing. (Reuters)
A Chinese national flag flutters on a financial street in Beijing. (Reuters)

Chinese lawmakers are deliberating a draft of the country's first basic law specifically focused on the development of the private sector, the country’s Xinhua news agency reported.

“The law will be conducive to creating a law-based environment that is favorable to the growth of all economic sectors, including the private sector,” said Justice Minister He Rong, while explaining the draft on Saturday during the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the national legislature.

The draft private sector promotion law covers areas such as fair competition, investment and financing environments, scientific and technological innovation, regulatory guidance, service support, rights and interests protection and legal liabilities.

The draft has incorporated suggestions solicited from representatives of the private sector, experts, scholars and the general public, the minister said.

China left its benchmark lending rates unchanged as expected at the monthly fixing on Friday.

Persistent deflationary pressure and tepid credit demand call for more stimulus to aid the broad economy, but narrowing interest margin on the back of fast falling yields and a weakening yuan limit the scope for immediate monetary easing.

The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) was kept at 3.10%, while the five-year LPR was unchanged at 3.60%.

In a Reuters poll of 27 market participants conducted this week, all respondents expected both rates to stay unchanged.

Morgan Stanley said in a note that the 2025 budget deficit and mix are more positive than expected and suggest Beijing is willing to set a high growth target and record fiscal budget to boost market confidence, but further policy details are unlikely before March.

Last Friday, data released by the country's central bank said total assets of China's financial institutions had risen to 489.15 trillion yuan (about $68.03 trillion) by the end of third quarter this year.

The figure represented a year-on-year increase of 8%, said the People's Bank of China.

Of the total, the assets of the banking sector reached 439.52 trillion yuan, up 7.3% year on year, while the assets of securities institutions rose 8.7% year on year to 14.64 trillion yuan.

The insurance sector's assets jumped 18.3% year on year to 35 trillion yuan, the data showed.

The liabilities of the financial institutions totaled 446.51 trillion yuan, up 8% year on year, according to the central bank.

Separately, data released by the National Energy Administration on Thursday showed that China's electricity consumption, a key barometer of economic activity, rose by 7.1% year on year in the first 11months of the year.

During the period, power consumption of the country's primary industries increased by 6.8% year on year, while that of its secondary and tertiary sectors rose by 5.3% and 10.4%, respectively.

Residential power usage saw strong growth of 11.6% during this period, the administration said.

In November alone, power usage climbed 2.8% from one year earlier, according to the data.