At a cabinet meeting on 1 February, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev criticized state-owned companies, banks and large holding companies for holding too many noncore assets. Nazarbaev said overly large companies need to slim down, adding that bloat hinders competition and stifles small business. \"They should rid themselves of their noncore assets in line with the market by selling them into a competitive environment,\" Nazarbayev said. Nazarbaev cited Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, the national railroad company, as an example of a structure with too many noncore assets. Setting out economic priorities, he said Kazakhstan needs to attract 30 transnational companies to work in the country\'s processing industry. Nazarbaev asked the government to complete a program for housing development in the first quarter of 2005 and to present a program for developing a micro-credit system in the next two weeks. (Kazakhstan Today)