As of May 9, Ukraine has sown 4.32 million hectares with spring grain and leguminous crops, which is in line with last year’s figure and accounts for 76% of the plan, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food reported on Friday.
According to its data, 1.07 million hectares were sown during the week, reducing the gap with last year’s sowing schedule by 6.1%.
As noted by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, 2.9 million hectares have already been sown with corn (1.92 million hectares a week earlier), 733,400 hectares with barley (715,200 hectares), 212,600 hectares with spring wheat (207,900 hectares), 208,900 hectares with peas (205,700 hectares), and 157,000 hectares with oats (157,000 hectares). ha (207.9 thousand ha), peas – 208.9 thousand ha (205.7 thousand ha), oats – 157 thousand ha (157 thousand ha), buckwheat – 16.3 thousand ha (7 thousand ha), millet – 15.7 thousand ha (6 thousand ha).
According to the plan, corn sowing reached 73%, barley – 94%, spring wheat – 93%, peas – 96%, oats – 97%, buckwheat – 18%, millet – 20%.
Last year, as of May 10, corn was sown on 2.84 million hectares, barley – 779,900 hectares, spring wheat – 244,900 hectares, peas – 161,600 hectares, oats – 165,000 hectares, buckwheat – 14,800 hectares, millet – 28,500 hectares.
According to information from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, the Poltava region leads in terms of sowing rates with 509,700 hectares, followed by the Kirovograd region with 352,000 hectares, the Chernihiv region with 349,700 hectares, the Cherkasy region with 339,800 hectares, and the Sumy region with 294,300 hectares.
Technical crops were sown on an area of 5.2 million hectares, compared with 3.432 million hectares a week earlier and 5.42 million hectares last year on the same date.
In particular, sunflower crops reached 3.5 million hectares (2.36 million hectares a week earlier and 3.96 million hectares last year), soybeans – 1.3 million hectares (0.73 million hectares and 1.20 million hectares), and sugar beet – 1.2 million hectares (0.73 million hectares and 1.20 million hectares). ha (2.36 million ha a week ago and 3.96 million ha last year), soybeans – 1.3 million ha (0.73 million ha and 1.20 million ha) and sugar beets – 0.22 million ha (0.22 million ha and 0.25 million ha).
The Ministry of Agrarian Policy notes that sunflower crops currently account for 69% of the plan, soybeans – 55.9%, and sugar beets – 99%.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), Ukrainians lost more than 3,100 mobile phones in the first quarter of 2025. This is almost 34% less than in the same period last year. In total, almost 20,000 phones were stolen or lost in Ukraine in 2024. Almost 70% of all lost phones are XIAOMI, SAMSUNG, and IPHONE.
3,191 mobile phones have already been stolen and lost in Ukraine since the beginning of 2025. This is almost 34% less than in the same period last year.
Overall, the number of smartphone thefts and losses is decreasing year by year. In 2024, 19,463 phones were stolen or lost, which is 33% less than in 2023.
The largest number of stolen or lost mobile phones this year was recorded in Kyiv — 352 cases (11% of the total). Zaporizhzhia (331 cases) and Kyiv (330 cases) regions accounted for 10% of smartphone thefts. The fewest mobile phones were stolen in the Kherson region (only 4 cases).
For four years in a row, XIAOMI, SAMSUNG, and IPHONE have been the most sought-after brands among thieves. They account for almost 70% of all lost phones this year. In the first quarter of 2025, thieves stole or Ukrainians lost 997 XIAOMI phones, 638 SAMSUNG phones, and 573 IPHONE phones.
It should be noted that the rating of the most sought-after mobile phones, according to the network of household appliances and electronics stores Comfy, is slightly different. Buyers’ preference fell on SAMSUNG, APPLE, and REDMI.
https://opendatabot.ua/analytics/stolen-phones-2024
The results of a sociological survey conducted by Active Group in collaboration with Experts Club show that Ukrainians’ attitude toward Paraguay is mostly neutral or uncertain.
According to the study, 73.5% of respondents hold a neutral position, while another 10.3% were unable to give a clear answer. Together, this accounts for over 83% of those surveyed, indicating an almost complete lack of knowledge about the country.
Only 10.1% of Ukrainians have a positive attitude toward Paraguay, of which 7.3% chose “mostly positive” and 2.8% “completely positive.” A negative attitude is held by 6.2% — 5.8% “mostly negative” and 0.4% “completely negative.”
“Paraguay is a country that is rarely mentioned in the news or public discourse. As a result, most Ukrainians have no emotional or informational connection to it,” explains Maksim Urakin, candidate of economic sciences and founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center.
Ukrainians know almost nothing about Paraguay. This attitude is the result of an information vacuum, not established prejudices or sympathies.
The presentation of the study is available at the link.
ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, URAKIN
In April 2025, Express Insurance paid out UAH 46.6 million, including UAH 37.4 million for comprehensive motor insurance and UAH 9.3 million for compulsory civil liability insurance, according to the company’s website.
In April, the company settled 620 insurance claims under CASCO and MTPL agreements, of which 522 were under CASCO and 98 under MTPL.
Incidents under CASCO contracts in April mainly involved traffic accidents, as well as damage to vehicles due to falling objects, animal attacks, natural disasters, and the actions of third parties. Most of the claims came from Kyiv and the surrounding region, accounting for about 59% of all cases.
According to the report, the largest payouts in April included: UAH 3.6522 million for a car that veered off the road and overturned into a ditch in the Rivne region on the Kyiv-Lviv highway, UAH 2.616 million as a result of an accident at a roundabout in the Zhytomyr region, and UAH 993,200 for a collision with a roe deer in the Vinnytsia region.
In addition, Express Insurance continues to support customers outside Ukraine. In April, the company’s customers sought assistance from various European countries. Most often, they came from Portugal, Poland, Spain, and Italy. Individual cases were also settled in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Latvia, Moldova, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. Most of the cases involved traffic accidents or damage caused by external factors, and there was one case of car theft. In Italy, a customer left his car in a parking lot and later discovered that it was missing. The company confirmed the theft and paid compensation in the amount of UAH 4.69 million. In the Czech Republic, a customer’s car was hit by a garbage truck with a metal protrusion at a gas station (the payment amounted to UAH 185,600). In Slovakia, a customer was unable to avoid a collision with an obstacle while driving, and UAH 129,900 was paid out.
As for MTPL payments, in more than 66% of cases, the paperwork was completed with the participation of the police, and in about 34% of cases, the Europrotocol procedure was followed. Most claims were received from Kyiv, Dnipro, Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi, Zaporizhzhia, Ternopil, Uzhhorod, Lviv, Zhytomyr, Kharkiv, and Cherkasy.
Express Insurance was founded in 2008 and is part of the UkrAVTO group of companies. It specializes in car insurance. The consistently high speed of claims settlement is ensured by optimal interaction with partner service stations.
Since April 2012, Express Insurance has been an associate member of the Motor Transport Insurance Bureau of Ukraine.
According to a survey conducted by Active Group in collaboration with the information and analytical center Experts Club, Ukrainians’ attitudes toward Colombia remain mostly neutral or negative.
According to the results, 57.4% of respondents hold a neutral position, while 19.1% expressed a negative attitude. Of these, 18.1% said their attitude was “mostly negative” and another 0.9% said it was “completely negative.”
A positive attitude is held by 14.6% of Ukrainians — 11.6% chose “mostly positive” and 3% “completely positive.” Nine percent of respondents were unable to decide on an answer.
“The image of Colombia in popular culture as a country with high crime rates, drug cartels, and political instability influences perceptions. Even with minimal news coverage, this associative framework remains,” comments Maxim Urakin, candidate of economic sciences and founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center.
Colombia has one of the highest levels of negative perception among Latin American countries. This demonstrates the power of stereotypes in shaping public opinion, even with a small amount of relevant information.
The presentation of the study is available at the link.
ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, URAKIN
The general meeting of shareholders of JSC Concern Galnaftogaz has decided to allocate most of its net profit for 2024 to dividend payments, according to the SMIDA information disclosure system.
According to the report, the total amount of dividends payable for last year is UAH 1.26 billion. The dividend per share is UAH 0.064. The payment period is from May 26 to October 30, 2025 (inclusive).
In accordance with this decision, on May 8, the board of directors of the concern decided to set May 23 as the date for compiling the list of persons entitled to receive dividends.
As reported, at the end of 2024, JSC Concern Galnaftogaz received UAH 1.424 billion in net profit. “Our company pays dividends from one business and reinvests the funds in the creation of new infrastructure and jobs in Ukraine in others. We are talking about our projects in renewable energy – we are building a 147 MW wind farm, with plans for a second phase with a larger capacity of 190 MW; a biofuel production plant is also under construction, and we are developing the agricultural sector. Investments in alternative energy alone amount to over €600 million. These projects are being implemented despite all the military risks, which demonstrates our company’s long-term business motivation within the country,” commented Vasyl Danylyak, CEO of the OKKO group of companies.
Vitaliy Antonov, a shareholder of GNG RETAIL LIMITED registered in Cyprus, who owns 99.22619% of its shares, initiated the distribution of profits at the shareholders’ meeting on April 30, 2025, as follows: UAH 1.26 billion for dividends and UAH 165.67 million to be left undistributed at the disposal of the joint-stock company.
Another draft resolution of the meeting on the distribution of profits provided for leaving it undistributed at the disposal of the joint-stock company.
Galnaftogaz manages one of the largest OKKO fuel station chains, which has over 400 complexes with a network of catering establishments. The concern also includes other businesses.
In June 2024, the EBRD and OKKO signed a EUR60 million loan agreement at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin for the construction of a new bioethanol plant in the Ternopil region with a capacity of 83,000 tons per year. It is planned to be built in two years. The products will be sold on foreign and domestic markets.
Recently, Vasyl Danylyak, CEO of the OKKO group of companies, announced that its 20 MW energy storage facility (ESF), which was completed at the end of 2024, could start providing energy balancing services to NEC Ukrenergo next month.
He also noted that the group is diversifying its business and, as part of this diversification, is developing a number of projects in renewable energy.
According to Danylyak, active preparations are underway for the construction of a 147 MW wind farm in the Volyn region, with financing provided by a number of international financial institutions. The company plans to complete the first phase of the wind farm by the end of this year, with full capacity expected to be reached by the end of the first quarter of next year.
Danylyak also announced further plans to implement a larger project in the Volyn region – a 190 MW wind farm, which has been under development for the past two years. Its cost is estimated at EUR 300 million, while the 147 MW wind farm is estimated at EUR 240 million.
According to him, the company is working with various financial institutions to raise funds for this project.
