MOSCOW, September 1 (RIA Novosti) - A Chinese company is ready to invest $1 billion in the purchase of finished facilities and shopping areas under construction to replace a notorious Moscow market, a Russian business daily said on Tuesday.
Cherkizovsky, Moscow's largest market, was closed on June 29 by order of Russia's consumer watchdog Rospotrebnadzor for health and safety violations. Work to dismantle the market started on August 18.
Experts have estimated that Jinyuan's investment will be enough to build or buy 1.5 million square meters of shopping or storage area, Vedomosti said.
China's government criticized Russia for the closure of the market, which left some 45,000 immigrants, mainly from China, Vietnam and former Soviet republics in Central Asia, jobless.
At talks with a Chinese delegation, Moscow city authorities pledged to allocate two areas with a total of 100 hectares (247 acres) for the construction of a shopping and logistics terminal worth some $1 billion. Customs and migration offices, a hotel and other facilities will be located on the site.