Stock Market Today

BEIJING -(Dow Jones)- China’sGeneral Administration of Customs confirmedWednesday that August crude-oil imports totaled 21.04 million metric tons,equivalent to four.97 million barrels a day, marginally up from the 12 months previously.

Liquefied organic gas imports final month achieved one.05 million tons, 5.5%higher, bringing complete imports within the very first 8 months to 7.41 million tons,up 28%, the data showed.

China imported 834,975 plenty of normal fuel in August, more than double onyear. Deliveries among January and August attained six.36 million tons, far more thantriple from the 12 months earlier.

-By Wayne Ma, Dow Jones Newswires; +86 ten 8400 7714; wayne.ma@dowjones.com

 (Finish) Dow Jones Newswires 09-21-110244ET Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

BEIJING -(Dow Jones)- China’sGeneral Administration of Customs confirmedWednesday that August crude-oil imports totaled 21.04 million metric tons,equivalent to four.97 million barrels a day, marginally up from the 12 months previously.

Liquefied organic gas imports final month achieved one.05 million tons, 5.5%higher, bringing complete imports within the very first 8 months to 7.41 million tons,up 28%, the data showed.

China imported 834,975 plenty of normal fuel in August, more than double onyear. Deliveries among January and August attained six.36 million tons, far more thantriple from the 12 months earlier.

-By Wayne Ma, Dow Jones Newswires; +86 ten 8400 7714; wayne.ma@dowjones.com

 (Finish) Dow Jones Newswires 09-21-110244ET Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

MOSCOW -(Dow Jones)- Russia may have an annual inflation rate lower than 7%this 12 months, the country’s finance minister Alexei Kudrin stated Wednesday.

“Prudent policy will allow us to have the inflation standing at 7% or evenlower,” Kudrin said.

The International Financial fund has forecast that Russian inflation willreach 8.9% in 2011.

Russia’s central bank has pledged to keep inflation at 7% or lower this year,a goal that seems increasingly possible as food prices continue to fall.Consumer prices dropped 0.2% in August, the first decline in Russia since 2005.

-By Alexander Kolyandr, Dow Jones Newswires; alexander.kolyandr@dowjones.com

(Nadia Popova in Moscow contributed to this report.)

 (Finish) Dow Jones Newswires 09-21-110311ET Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

MOSCOW -(Dow Jones)- Russia may have an annual inflation rate lower than 7%this 12 months, the country’s finance minister Alexei Kudrin stated Wednesday.

“Prudent policy will allow us to have the inflation standing at 7% or evenlower,” Kudrin said.

The International Financial fund has forecast that Russian inflation willreach 8.9% in 2011.

Russia’s central bank has pledged to keep inflation at 7% or lower this year,a goal that seems increasingly possible as food prices continue to fall.Consumer prices dropped 0.2% in August, the first decline in Russia since 2005.

-By Alexander Kolyandr, Dow Jones Newswires; alexander.kolyandr@dowjones.com

(Nadia Popova in Moscow contributed to this report.)

 (Finish) Dow Jones Newswires 09-21-110311ET Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

MILAN -(Dow Jones)- The head of Italy’s debt management agency has assuredinstitutional investors that Italy is not facing difficulties from the risingcost of issuing new debt, according to a report published Wednesday in thebusiness tabloid MF.

At a meeting with investors hosted by Nomura in Istanbul, Maria Cannata saidinterest payments made by the government among January and August wereequivalent to 4.80% of the country’s gross domestic product, against 4.53% in2010, MF quotes her as saying without citing sources.

The figure stands below the levels of more than 5% seen in 2007 and 2008, thenewspaper says.

Cannata said the average yield on new debt was 2.99%, while its maturity hadlengthened to an average of more than seven years, MF says.

Her meeting with investors was held before Standard & Poor’s downgradedItaly’s debt rating, MF adds.

Newspaper website: www.milanofinanza.it

-Milan Bureau, Dow Jones Newswires; +39 02 5821 9901

 (Finish) Dow Jones Newswires 09-21-110316ET Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.