KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Capital investment in residential real estate in Kyiv under transactions carried out by Blagovist and Park Lane real estate agencies (both based in Kyiv), part of First Realty Group, in April 2016 increased by 24% compared to March and amounted to $23.784 million, while the number of purchase and sales transactions rose by 1.4%.
Blagovist said, with reference to its CEO Halyna Melnykova, this data includes the calculation of the cost of a transaction in the national currency at the average exchange rate to U.S. dollars on the day of the transaction.
“We observe a gradual increase in the number of transactions and the volume of market capitalization. This is due to the fact that the current market conditions are favorable for both sellers and buyers. First of all, this is facilitated by the stability of prices. Price correction took place in 2015, and the cost of facilities remains almost unchanged since the beginning of this year. According to our forecast, the situation will not change significantly in the short term,” the expert said.
According to the report, in the total number of First Realty Group transactions in April 2016 the share of deals in the price range of up to $50,000 was 27%. The largest demand was fixed for one- and two-room apartments in Darnytsky, Desniansky, Sviatoshynsky, Pechersky and Shevchenkivsky districts in Kyiv.
KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade at a meeting about liberalizing forex regulation with the participation of representatives of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) and the Finance Ministry reached an agreement to develop a roadmap for minimizing bureaucratic obstacles.
According to a report on the website of the ministry, the meeting was chaired by First Vice Prime Minister, Minister Economic Development and Trade Stepan Kubiv on the initiative of the ministry, which was supported by Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman at a cabinet meeting on April 27.
Participants at the meeting discussed the simplification of investment abroad, liberalization of currency regulations, the obligatory sale of foreign currency earnings, the return of foreign exchange earnings and simplifying banking procedures.
The ministry said the NBU had already taken some steps to mitigate requirements for the mandatory sale of foreign currency earnings and liberalization of currency regulation with the aim of returning dividends to foreign investors.
As reported, the NBU by decree No. 140 dated March 3, 2016 (valid until June 8, 2016) once again extended major foreign exchange restrictions, but increased the daily limit on the sale and withdrawal of foreign currency from ATMs.
KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine saw a 2.3-fold rise in sales of new buses in Ukraine in January-April 2016 year-over-year, to 345 buses, the Ukrautoprom association has reported.
The press service of the association said that Ataman bus was a leader in sales (made by Cherkasy Bus) with 109 buses sold – almost five times more than a year ago.
Ruta buses made by Chasiv Yar Buses (Donetsk region) were second with the market share of 16%. Some 56 Ruta buses were sold (8% up).
Russia’s PAZ is third with 41 buses sold and 12% of the market share (4.5-fold rise).
Russia’s GAZ is fourth with 37 buses sold (2.5-fold rise) and 11% of the market share.
Some 36 I-VAN buses were sold (made by Zaporizhia Automobile Plant).
Sale of buses in April grew by 2.3 times, to 79 buses. Ruta buses sales were the largest – 21 buses were sold compared to 18 in April 2015.
Ataman buses were second with 19 buses (2.1-fold rise), I-VAN buses were third with 11 buses sold.
KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will issue a loan to Chernivtsi to implement an investment project to improve the urban public transport infrastructure through purchase of 40 new trolleybuses, related equipment and modernization of traction substations and contact networks.
According to Chernivtsi City Council, an agreement of intent on preparing loan financing for the project was signed on May 5 by Chernivtsi Mayor Oleksiy Kaspruk, Director of Chernivtsi Trolleybus Department Ivan Ivanichek and EBRD Senior Banker Denis Gaiovy.
According to Gaiovy, preparation for credit financing, during which the exact amount of a loan and its conditions will be determined, will last for several months.
“Today we are looking forward to the amount of EUR10 million. We expect the loan to be granted for 13 years with a possible three-year grace period, but this must be confirmed by the bank board of directors and the decision of Chernivtsi City Council,” he said.
As reported, in August 2015 it became known that the EBRD is mulling the issue of EUR100 million to several Ukrainian cities to improve public transport infrastructure with a focus on renovating and improving the efficiency of transport – Odesa, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi and some other cities of the country under municipal guarantees.
KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine’s Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Utilities Economy Ministry has selected 219 projects totally worth UAH 1.01 billion to be financed using funds from the State Regional Development Fund in 2016, the ministry has reported on its website.
“The proposals to distribute the State Regional Development Fund resources to be used for the implementation of regional projects and programs in 2016 have been drawn up by the ministry after regional selection panels did their work,” Minister Hennadiy Zubko said.
He said that the selected projects include construction and reconstruction of schools, kindergartens, hospitals, local and main roads, energy efficiency measures and modernization of heating efficiency of socially important facilities.
Selected projects will be located in Vinnytsia, Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Zakarpattia, Kyiv, Poltava, Rivne, Ternopil, Kharkiv and Khmelnytsky regions, as well as in the capital Kyiv.
KYIV. May 6 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Inkerman Trade House LLC (Kyiv), a Ukrainian division of Inkerman International, seeks to boost sparkling wine sales by 2.8 times in 2016, to 2.2 million bottles.
“We seek to boost production of sparkling wine from 800,000 bottles last year to 2.2 million bottles. We think that these ambitious goals are realizable: demand on our products is high,” Director General of Inkerman Trade House Hanna Horkun said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
She said that the company purchased some wine materials in Moldova for production of sparkling wine, as these materials were not present on the Ukrainian market.
“We have four types of sparkling wine and with plans to produce 2.2 million bottles it was not easy to find high-quality materials. I think that we bought all high-quality materials Ukraine had and bought additional good wine materials in Moldova, which, unfortunately, were not present on the Ukrainian market,” she said.
Inkerman Trade House in 2015 sold 864,500 decaliters of still wine and 123,580 decaliters of sparkling wine. Sales of sparkling wine increased by 52% compared to 2014.
The company’s share of the Ukrainian wine-making market has increased from 12.7% in 2013 to 16% in 2016. This is linked to the absence of Crimean wine and the increase in the price of imported wine.
Horkun said that before 2014 all production facilities of Inkerman International were located in Crimea. After the annexation of the peninsula, Inkerman International AB (Sweden) registered subsidiary Inkerman Trade House headquartered in Kyiv and transferred bottling of still wine to Tavria Cognac House in Nova Kakhovka in Kherson region. Sparkling wine initially was bottled in Odesa at the facilities of Odesavynprom.
“Under Ukrainian legislation we do not have a chance to cooperate with our own Crimean asset where shareholders invested over EUR 40 million. Over 2,000 our employees remain in Crimea. It is clear that we are responsible for our company, investment of shareholders and employees,” she said.
The winery in Crimea is neither a contractor nor asset in ownership in Ukraine. It is a separate structural unit of the holding. The Crimean plant continues operation and selling its products in Crimea, Russia and China.
Shareholders in Inkerman International AB are HTT BWH Holding Ltd (Finland, 40%), Eksen Investments Limited (Cyprus, 40%) and Board Chairman Valeriy Shamotiy manages Eksen’s shares and Lorimer Ventures Limited (Cyprus, 20%) and U.S. Horizon Capital manages Lorimer’s shares.
