Doing business in Russia is never dull. But also not as lucrative as the majority of the state's entrepreneurs and companies had expected. Five years after the region's leading port, Vladivostok, opened to the outside world, the hoped-for economic boom has yet to materialize. A Washington Apple Commission box is a little worse for wear on a Russian dock. The Apple Commission is one of the state's trade success stories in the Russian Far East.
Trade remains more or less on a rudimentary level, with food stuffs accounting the bulk of cargo.
And the dreams of exploiting the region's seemingly unlimited natural resources of timber, minerals and precious metals have met with few successes. Last year was a severe setback to the region. The uncertain presidential elections, the Chechen war, Russia's continued stagnation and the booming United State economy amplified worries about investing money in the Russian Far East. IBM and the accounting firm Deloitte and Touche are among those who have shifted to more monied markets in the last year. Washington state's Weyerhaeuser attempted to enter the Russian timber market a few years ago, only to fail amid extensive intrigue.