GOVERNMENT SEEKS TO REIN IN ELECTRIC POWER RATE INCREASES.

A government commission chaired by Deputy Premier Anatoly Chubaisannounced that electric utilities would not be allowed to raisetheir prices beyond 70 percent of the general price increase duringany given period, Russian television reported August 23. Thislimitation will bring some relief to Russia’s hard- pressed consumersand thus is potentially useful to the government during this electionseason, but it will also make it more difficult for the utilitiesto recover their costs, and thus threatens shutdowns in the future.Meanwhile, the Moscow city government has approved a decree givingit greater control over prices of key consumer goods, a step thatflies in the face of the market and quite possibly violates RussianFederation law, Kommersant-Daily reported August 23.

Ruble Corridor Seen Rising, Narrowing.