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It is all very un-Russian. Strong growth and a burgeoning trade surplus mean Russia is flush with money, money that would have been squandered in the past. But for once the government is thinking ahead.

Oyak, the armed forces pension fund, is one of Turkey's largest conglomerates and has joint ventures in multinationals such as Renault, Axa, Elf and Goodyear. But most people do not know of its military origins. Now, Oyak seeks to come into the open, emerging among the top five companies in Turkey.

Deal: Merger of technology platformsStructure: MTS buys 15% stake in CoredealResult: New corporate bond structure – CoredealMTS

On October 9 representatives from three of the leading international cash management banks sat down with treasury officials from three leading international corporations to discuss the key issues of the moment: reviewing contingency planning for any future disruption to the payments system, moving onto internet technology and reducing errors in simple payments processes. While the banks feel they must invest heavily in technology to stay in this game, the corporates can’t see why they don’t share these costs and concentrate instead on getting the basic services right.

The first good news for Indian privatization this year came in early October. The government announced the sale of two small companies. A 51% stake in CMC, a software company, was sold to Tata Sons, which owns Tata Consultancy Services, India's biggest software exporter, for Rs1.5 billion ($31 million).

Michael Dobson should have an interesting time turning around Schroders.

Parents' jobs have long been a source of playground rivalries but if your mum or dad worked for a private-equity firm it was never much to boast about. Until now.

In a period of uncertainty, Pfandbriefe ought to flourish. Yet the German mortgage bond market is still slow, hit by adverse swap market conditions and credit concerns springing from radical restructuring among the German banks. Even so, rival breeds of covered bonds in France and Spain are doing well. And Ireland aims to create a superior legal framework to put Germany in the shade. Could this rivalry give covered bonds a much-needed shot in the arm?

For decades Mediobanca had an unchallenged grip on Italian investment banking. Then the loss of a key deal-maker with unrivalled contacts, followed by the death of its illustrious founder, opened up major deals to foreign rivals and took the shine off its reputation. Yet the wound to it’s pride may not be terminal. With a new generation of bankers, Mediobanca’s name still commands a lot of respect in Milan. Even so, its days of independence may be numbered.

When the world tipped deeper into recession on September 11 it found that Turkey was already there deep down in the hole – a recession veteran. Assisted by the IMF, Turkey has been trying since 1999 to overcome its worst economic crisis since the Second World War. It has had little success. Its support for the US means more funding is likely, but funding alone can’t solve Turkey’s problems.

A partial recovery in US equity markets looks promising. However, as bad economic news flows in there’s still uncertainty on the broader question of whether a market bottom has been reached. Bond yield curves suggest a different story to conventional equity wisdom, which implies investors should now be positioning themselves in mid-recession for a market upturn.

Author: James Smalhout