The deficit of Ukraine’s foreign trade in goods in 2020 decreased by 54.6% compared to 2019 and amounted to $4.878 billion (in 2019 some $10.746 billion), the State Statistics Service has reported.
In 2020, export of goods compared to 2019 decreased by 1.7% (by $847 million), amounting to $49.213 billion, import by 11% (by $6.692 billion), to $54.091 billion.
The coverage of imports by exports was 0.91 (in 2019 some 0.82).
The seasonally adjusted exports of goods in December 2020 compared to November increased by 3.3%, imports – by 3.7%. The seasonally adjusted foreign trade balance in December 2020 was negative and amounted to $499 million. In November 2020, it was also negative at $465 million.
The State Statistics Service specified that foreign trade operations were carried out with partners from 234 countries of the world.
Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates have signed memorandums and contracts worth $3 billion or more, the presidential press service said. “As part of the official visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the United Arab Emirates, the Ukrainian delegation signed a number of memorandums and contracts totaling $3 billion or more,” the press service said in the statement.
In particular, memorandums of understanding were signed between the State Property Fund of Ukraine and the Mubadala investment company. They are aimed at deepening cooperation in the development of promising investment projects and the participation of the Emirate side in the program of privatization of state-owned property in Ukraine.
“At all international meetings, I urge to invest in Ukraine. Our state has enormous potential: geopolitical position, natural resources, people of knowledge. Right now is the time to understand this potential and create a strong economy,” Zelensky said.
He said that attracting investment is the key to Ukraine’s economic growth. “The signing of a memorandum with the Mubadala investment company of the government of Abu Dhabi on intentions to invest in Ukraine is a very important step in opening the way for major investments in Ukraine from Western Asia,” Zelensky said.
In addition, the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine signed a memorandum with INTELMAX Management Consulting, which provides for cooperation on the creation of a platform for the exchange of intellectual property based on the Fantom blockchain, which will provide increased security and transparency. It is also planned to introduce blockchain technologies into government processes and services.
The sides also signed documents in the defense sector, discussing the possibility of constructing joint factories outside Ukraine.
As the President’s Office said, the possibility of opening a Ukrainian sovereign fund for joint investments is also being considered.
“Along with this, some 18 Ukrainian private companies, including Interpipe, Dragon Capital, DTEK, Unit City, EastOne, UMG, Ufuture, Fortior, signed memorandums with the Mubadala state investment fund,” the President’s Office said.
Ukrainian industrial company Interpipe made a first supply of line pipes to Qatar Petroleum, one of the biggest oil producers in the Middle East.
According to a company press release, steel pipes are going to be applied for the QP’s onshore Dukhan Field oil and gas basin project.
According to Qatar Petroleum specification, pipes must comply with the highest level of sour service requirements and operate in the H2S environment.
It took us more than three years to become a prequalified supplier for Qatar Petroleum. On the final stage, Bureau Veritas, an international inspection company nominated by QP, conducted a detailed audit of Interpipe facilities to confirm that all specifications and technical requirements were met.
Andrey Burtsev, commercial director for Ukraine, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East regions, said that the contract with Qatar Petroleum is an important milestone in Interpipe development in the Middle East.
“We have passed through a difficult and long path of negotiations, audits and prequalifications before first supply was made. QP is very selective and cautious when choosing vendors and this contract confirms Interpipe’s reputation as a reliable and first-class pipes supplier for the global Oil & Gas companies,” he said.
Misen Enterprises AB (Sweden) received $47.06 million from Ukrgazvydobuvannia (UGV), a subsidiary of Naftogaz Ukrainy, in an arbitration dispute over a stake in the Joint Activity in accordance with a ruling by the Kyiv Court of Appeal made on January 5, 2021.
According to the report of Misen Energy AB (publ) on its website, another UAH 1 million was received by another company under its control – Karpatygaz LLC.
Ukrgazvydobuvannia also paid UAH 236.11 million in nonresident income tax to the state budget.
According to the report, this compensation reflects Misen Enterprises AB’s and LLC Karpatygaz’s share of the replacement costs of the equipment subject to the joint ownership under the Joint Activity agreement.
“However, this compensation does not reflect the going concern value of Misen Energy AB (publ.)’s share at the time the exorbitant subsoil use tax was imposed on the Joint Activity, which led to the termination of the Joint Activity Agreement. Misen Energy AB (publ) and its partially owned subsidiaries reserve all their rights in this respect,” Misen said.
The Retail & Development Advisor (RDA) consulting company acted as a broker when signing a lease agreement for the Nikolsky shopping and entertainment center in Kharkiv with the German brand of youth clothing New Yorker, RDA CEO Taisia Litovchenko has told Interfax-Ukraine. “We are glad that the pool of tenants in the Kharkiv-based Nikolsky shopping and entertainment center has been expanded by a well-known international retailer. We are sure that the New Yorker store will expand the range of goods in the shopping center and attract an additional flow of visitors,” Litovchenko said.
According to her, the total area of the store will be 1,549 square meters.
New Yorker is a German brand. Most of the assortment is reserved for youth sports and casual clothing, as well as underwear and accessories.
The New Yorker network has been developing in Ukraine since 2011.
According to the company’s website, as of January 11, 2021, the chain had 11 stores in Kyiv, Odesa, Lviv, Kharkiv, Kryvy Rih and Sumy. On the international market, New Yorker is represented by more than 1,100 stores in 46 countries.
The Nikolsky mall is scheduled to open in the spring of 2021. The developer of the project is Budhouse Group.
The European Union welcomes Ukraine’s progress in reforms, but significant work still needs to be done in this regard, in particular, judicial reform, EU Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Olivér Várhelyi said.
“A significant part of the meeting today was devoted to reforms and their implementation. We see that Ukrainian government continues to take a number of very important steps in all directions. Despite this, there is still a lot of work to be done. This is very welcome, but we need to see further progress. This includes, in particular, the need for judicial reform. We are ready to help, and we continue to help Ukraine in this regard,” he said at a press conference after the seventh meeting of the EU-Ukraine Association Council in Brussels on Thursday, February 11.
Várhelyi said that the most important areas of reform for Ukraine are the establishment of the rule of law and judicial reform, the fight against corruption and economic reforms.
