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WTO: Fears and Hopes

Russia’s entry into the World Trade Organization is considered as more or less distant, but inevitable step. Advocates of WTO membership claim that Russia will be unable to go on with its economic reforms and to become a peer in the world trade without the participation in this organization. The opponents, who are shrinking in numbers, think that the WTO membership will inflict irreparable damage to numerous industries and will deprive the government of the Russian Federation of the ability to make adequate decisions.

Chemical and pharmaceutical industries are sensitive in this aspect. Russia’s entry into WTO will not go unnoticed for them, since it will invoke an essential (about 3 %) slowing down in production growth rates. Analysts think it is impossible to predict all the consequences of Russia’s entry into WTO. They can be both quantitative – a different ratio of the domestic production versus import, and qualitative – the creation of a fair competitive environment, a higher predictability of administrative decisions. First results will become obvious only in 2-3 years after the entry.

Table of contents

Chemical complex of Ukraine: Current State, Major Problems, Development Outlook
The specific feature of today's chemical complex of Ukraine is the growth of commodity production under an essentially old structural and technological model. The average rate of capacity loading in agrochemistry (particularly, in carbamide production), basic organic synthesis, and plastic production reached 85-90 %, which testifies to the fact that the extensive growth resources are exhausted and qualitative structural and technological changes are needed. The changes should be aimed at priority development of production to meet the domestic market demand and at a gradual departure from feedstock-oriented export. It is also necessary to increase the share of produce manufactured by deeper feedstock processing. Such specific targets are incorporated into the Ukrainian "State Program of Chemical Industry Development for 2005-2011". The transformations will be based on a new innovation and investment development model pursuing the basic goal of increasing the competitiveness of the industry.

Treating Cheep: Russian Pharmaceutical Market
Poor quality medical products or obviously forged preparations are no rarity in the domestic pharmaceutical market. Their estimated market share is pegged at 20 %. The main reason the quantity of fakes is so large is the inability of the population to buy expensive high quality drugs and the lack of objective information on medicines on sale. The official market of medical preparations undergoes a general transition to generics. The factories that produce inexpensive popular drugs are simply shut down. Russian generics, however, are often poor in quality, since not all technological secrets of original drug developers are accessible to Russian manufacturers and the feedstock the use is often inadequate. The problem can be solved through the transition of pharmaceutical enterprises to GMP system and the improvement of pharmaceutical awareness of the population.

Akhmet Mazgarov: "The Russian industrial science has been destroyed either purposefully, or incidentally"
Akhmet M. Mazgarov is the director of state unitary enterprise "All-Russia Research Institute of Hydrocarbon Feedstock" and a member of the Academy of Sciences of Tatarstan Republic. The institute that he heads established and successfully runs a scientific school studying sulfur compounds, developing manufacturing technologies and methods to protect the environment against organic sulfur pollution.

Russian Oilfield Chemistry: Problems and Achievements
The current active exploitation of oil deposits leads to their exhaustion and reduces the oil recovery, while the consumption of this feedstock is growing. The efficiency of oil recovery can be enhanced through the use of chemical agents.

Price Situation in the Fertilizer Market
The favorable situation in the global fertilizer market late this year encouraged Russia to expand its fertilizer exports. The domestic prices keep on growing.

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