Yesterday, shares of Mechel (MTL) plunged 38%. The reason for the drop is former President Vladimir Putin, who's now Prime Minister, criticized Mechel's pricing policies. Putin claims that Mechel is selling its steel to foreign customers at twice the rate of Russian customers, and he's asked the government's anti-trust agency to look into the matter.

Doing business in Russia is very tricky and the last thing you want to do is make enemies in the Kremlin, particularly Putin. The Russian government went after the oil company Yukos for tax evasion. The billionaire behind Yukos is now in prison in Siberia, and other key officials fled the country. The fear is that the same could happen to Igor Zyuzin, the billionaire behind Mechel.

The good news is that the stock is bouncing back today by over 13%, and the company has released an official statement saying that it will cooperate with the government. I'll keep new posted on any further developments in Mechel.