published May 8th 2016, 6:01 pm, by Esteban Duarte (Bloomberg) — Russia and the U.K. give companies the lowest effective tax rates among the world’s leading economies, according to a report by UHY, a network of auditors and consulting firms. Companies in Russia pay corporate tax at 20 percent while

published Apr 4th 2016, 6:01 pm, by Benjamin D Katz (Bloomberg) — Global military spending has begun rising in real terms for the first time since the U.S. began its withdrawal of troops from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Defense budgets rose

©2016 Bloomberg News O41UB96KLVRO (Bloomberg) — Russia said it will start withdrawing forces from Syria in a surprise move that puts pressure on its ally President Bashar Al-Assad, as well as opposition groups, to reach a deal at the peace talks that got under way hours earlier in Geneva. Russian

©2016 Bloomberg News O29CJT6TTDSO (Bloomberg) — The Pentagon’s weapons buyer says the U.S. defense budget being delivered Tuesday has been designed to counter five threats: Russia, China, Iran, North Korea and extremist terrorist groups including Islamic State. “The strategic environment that we all live in is changing, and it’s changing

©2015 Bloomberg News NZS1N66VDKHT (Bloomberg) — If oil’s slump to an 11-year low stung traders, it’s just a taste of the hardship felt by the industry. Brent’s plunge to $35.98 a barrel on Tuesday, its weakest intraday level since 2004, was probably painful enough for any remaining oil bulls. But that

©2015 Bloomberg View NWFRS26JTSEC (Bloomberg View) — Say this much for Russian President Vladimir Putin: He knows the U.S. and the world will take him seriously only if they have no choice. This is the logic behind his military intervention in Syria, and it demands a U.S. response. QuickTakeSyria’s Civil

©2015 Bloomberg News NUPOUD6JTSEK (Bloomberg) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said the fight against Islamic State should be the global community’s top priority in Syria, rather than changing the regime of Bashar al- Assad. A broad coalition is needed to combat the threat posed by the terrorist group, which wants

©2015 Bloomberg News NSJX1A6K50XW (Bloomberg) — Russia is pushing for a broad coalition to fight Islamic State, including Iraqi and Syrian government forces, and rejects continuing pressure from the U.S. and its allies for the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said air strikes conducted by

©2015 Bloomberg News NMRE3N6KLVRC (Bloomberg) — Russia’s decision to lift a ban on the delivery of an air-defense missile system to Iran amid nuclear negotiations drew objections from the U.S. and sharp criticism from Israel. Russian President Vladimir Putin repealed the self-imposed 2010 prohibition on exporting the S-300 missile system,