"The law on consolidated financial statements will be adopted soon, and will oblige [companies] to use International Financial Reporting Standards and make Russian companies more transparent for foreign investors," Putin told a Russian-German economic forum in the West Siberian oil city of Tomsk.
Putin also said Russia was continuing to make its legislation more business-friendly by liberalizing foreign currency legislation and amending laws on land use. He also said Russia was creating special economic zones designed to encourage investment in high-tech and other industries by offering companies customs and tax breaks of up to 20 years.
The economic forum is taking place on the sidelines of talks in Tomsk between Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel focusing on bilateral economic cooperation, particularly on energy security, and the Iranian nuclear crisis. A number of major deals between businesses from the two countries are expected to be signed during the forum.
Putin said Russia was aiming at integration into the global economy and diversifying exports of energy resources, and added that Russia's credit ratings had grown dramatically in 2005, by nearly 84%.
The Russian economy has been growing briskly in the last five years, Putin said. In 2005, it grew 6.4%, and per-capita GDP was more than three times the level of 1999.
"We hope our German partners will take account of this progress, and make a choice in favor of expanding their presence on the Russian market," Putin said.
