American fast-food chain KFC has opened 18 establishments in Ukraine over the past three years and brought their number to 66, in 2025 it is expected to open new restaurants in Odessa, Kiev region and Sokolniki (Lviv region), in Rivne and Kamenskoye (Dnipropetrovsk region) said CEO of KFC franchisee in Ukraine Alina Kiptik in an interview with Forbes Ukraina.
“This year in all establishments in Ukraine we will launch an opportunity to take cold drinks without limit. We will continue the development of omnichannel and digitalization, we will launch ordering via QR codes. The menu will feature an updated line of Ukrainian dishes, two original lines that will pleasantly surprise guests, as well as new drinks, snacks, desserts and other interesting items”, – shared Kiptik.
In addition, KFC every 2-3 months adds new flavors to the menu, seasonal drinks and novelties in the snacks and desserts category. For 2024, 36 new products were launched, including the Ukrainian line.
“More than 80% of the products used in the restaurants are Ukrainian. When building and decorating the interiors of establishments, we also use materials from Ukrainian companies. Part of the kitchen equipment is also made in Ukraine,” Kiptik noted.
KFC in Ukraine in 2024 launched an application where you can make an order and get discounts and bonuses, which can then be exchanged for items from the menu. Each restaurant of the Ukrainian chain was equipped with self-service kiosks. At the beginning of 2024, less than 50% of orders came through them, and at the end of the year – more than 80%.
The KFC brand, owned by the American company Yum! Brands, has been on the Ukrainian market since 2013. In Ukraine, the chain is developed by three franchisee-operators of public catering restaurants: Global Restaurant Group-Ukraine LLC, Testi Food LLC and DTS-Kharkiv LLC, whose offices are located in Kyiv, Dnipro and Kharkiv, respectively.
The international rating agency Fitch Ratings revised upward the price forecast for copper and aluminum for the coming years due to the imbalance in the global market, for gold – due to geopolitical tensions. The experts also adjusted the cost estimates for coking and thermal coal, platinum, palladium and lithium for 2025, reflecting short-term price factors, the agency said.
Expectations for iron ore, nickel, zinc and cobalt were unchanged.
In addition, analysts added a forecast for raw material costs in 2028.
“U.S. trade duties are likely to have implications for the global economy and thus increase volatility in metals prices,” the report said.
The higher forecasts for copper for 2025-2027 reflect a tight global market balance in the short to medium term due to still growing demand from China, although growth slows to 2-3% per year from 7% in 2023. Refined copper consumption in the PRC accounts for almost 60% of global demand.
The lower coking coal forecast for this year reflects weaker steel demand in China, Europe, Japan and South Korea. Meanwhile, coal supplies have been affected by outages at several mines and severe weather conditions. Coking coal demand is likely to recover only towards the end of this year, when new blast furnaces in India and Southeast Asia come online.
Higher aluminum forecasts for 2025-2026 are supported by increased demand, especially in developed markets and China, and limited supply growth, as well as higher alumina prices due to supply disruptions.
Higher gold price expectations for 2025-2027 are driven by a higher geopolitical premium due to the precious metal being considered a “safe haven”.
“Trade war fears and volatility in equity and bond markets have increased investment inflows into gold, leading to record prices. Geopolitical risks and growing investor concerns about inflation and sovereign debt should support prices in the short to medium term,” the Fitch report said.
Expectations for platinum and palladium for this year have been lowered due to a likely price correction due to the impact of the trade war. “We expect suppliers to eventually reduce production, leading to a price recovery in line with our assumptions in 2026,” the agency’s analysts said.
The lowered price forecasts for thermal coal for 2025 reflect weaker demand, especially from China and India, where inventories remain high.
Deteriorating estimates for lithium for the current year reflect rising supplies from China and Africa, contributing to market saturation despite strong demand from electric vehicle manufacturers, Fitch said.
China’s total overseas non-financial direct investment (ODI) in January-February rose 9.1 percent year-on-year to $22.97 billion, the Ministry of Commerce said.
The amount of money invested in states along the Belt and Road rose 17.6% to $5.52 billion, Xinhua news agency quoted the ministry as saying.
As reported, by the end of 2024, the total volume of Chinese ODI increased by 10.5% to $143.85 billion.
On March 22-23, the cost of fuel on the steles of premium networks of filling stations OKKO and WOG decreased for diesel and gasoline A-95 by 5 UAH/l – to 52.99 and 53.99 UAH/l respectively, for liquefied gas (LPG) – by 3 UAH/l, to 35.48-35.49 UAH/l. The companies announced this on their Facebook pages on Saturday.
“Fuel prices are valid when refueling at all filling stations of the network (…) are valid when buying at “Gamanets PRIDE” up to 500 liters”, – noted, in particular, in WOG.
In turn, according to enkorr, the Kiev network of filling stations KLO from March 22 to 24 reduced prices for light petroleum products by 5-7 UAH/l depending on the brand, for LPG – by 2 UAH/l. Discounts are valid only upon presentation of a coupon at the cash desk.
According to enkorr, since the beginning of the week the trend of cheaper fuel has started in retail chains. In particular, the cost of fuel, depending on the operator and type, has decreased to 2 UAH/liter.
