US Losing Russian Market As Profitable Investment Destination Due To Sanctions - AmCham

US Losing Russian Market as Profitable Investment Destination Due to Sanctions - AmCham

Washington's anti-Moscow sanctions have delivered the hardest blow to bilateral cooperation in financial and energy sectors, with US companies losing the Russian market as an attractive investment destination and seeking a more notable economic presence in the country, Alexis Rodzianko, the president and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Russia, told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2018) Washington's anti-Moscow sanctions have delivered the hardest blow to bilateral cooperation in financial and energy sectors, with US companies losing the Russian market as an attractive investment destination and seeking a more notable economic presence in the country, Alexis Rodzianko, the president and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Russia, told Sputnik.

"The areas that are most affected by sanctions, that affect American business, are the financial area where investment banking cannot do nearly as much business as it used to do and would like to do. Russia is a very good customer, very high-quality borrower and high-quality investment destination, but because of restrictions on the access of Russia to capital markets that business isn't being done, nearly as much," Rodzianko said on the sidelines of the annual business and investment conference of AmCham.

He added that US companies would also like to be present in the Arctic where deals involving US technologies for fracking and shale oil extraction could be reached, but sanctions made it impossible.

According to Rodzianko, the uncertainty created by sanctions in the business climate is pushing potential Russian partners to find business partners elsewhere.

Over recent years, the United States has introduced multiple anti-Russia sanction packages over its alleged "malign activities" in Ukraine, Syria and "interference" in the 2016 US presidential campaign, which Moscow has repeatedly refuted. The unilateral restrictions provide for assets freezes, restricted access to financial markets and secondary sanctions on entities doing business with the Russian defense industry.