Like many developing countries seeking more revenues from their natural resources, Kazakhstan pushed to change the terms of a contract with foreign companies over the development of the massive Kashagan oil field. The Kazakh government has said that the failure of the consortium developing Kashagan, widely considered to be the world's most important new oil field, to start production by 2008 was a breach of contract. "The central issue here is the financial revenues for the government, likely...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- In a bid to expand its presence in Europe, Kazakhstan's state-controlled oil and gas company KazMunayGas has agreed to buy a 75% equity stake in oil firm Rompetrol Group N.V. in an acquisition estimated to be worth $2.7 billion. The key asset of Netherlands-based Rompetrol Group N.V. is refiner Rompetrol Rafinare SA in Romania, whose shares surged 14% on the Bucharest Stock Exchange Tuesday. In a joint statement Monday, KazMunayGas (KMG) and Rompetrol said that the...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Popular anger over tumbling equity prices erupted in Pakistan on Thursday, underscoring the difficulties regulators face in attempting to prop up falling markets as turbulence in many of the world's financial markets continues unabated. The turmoil in Pakistan comes at a time when several emerging markets are considering market stabilization measures, while regulators in the United States are moving to limit short selling and speculation in the oil market. Regulators...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- A year that started with great expectations for emerging markets has turned out to be a disaster. The global financial crisis, which originated in the developed world, unleashed a storm of selling and plunged the global economy into a very severe downturn. Against this grim background, the MSCI Emerging Markets index shed 56%, as investors pulled billions of dollars out of developing economies. As of early December on a year-to-date basis, investors removed all but...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The global economy will contract even more than previously expected in 2009, as recessions in non-U.S. developed countries will likely be as bad as and possibly much worse than that gripping the United States, according to research firm IHS Global Insight. Global real gross domestic product is expected to contract 1.2% this year, a steeper decline compared to a previous forecast of a 0.5% contraction, said economists at IHS Global Insight in a research report on...