Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko has published a list of shopping malls, shopping and entertainment centers, pharmacies and other establishments that will be able to work during prolonged blackouts.
As clarified by the mayor in his Telegram channel, the work schedules during blackouts may be reduced.
Retail chains: https://tinyurl.com/2wundzdr
SHOPPING MALLS: https://tinyurl.com/w22r77e5
Communal markets: https://tinyurl.com/fd95bf6b
Agricultural fairs: https://tinyurl.com/29fxpcj9
Establishments with consumer services: https://tinyurl.com/y5282vcx
Food establishments: https://tinyurl.com/5n75nza6
Service stations and auto shops: https://tinyurl.com/27t824ac
Private medical institutions: https://tinyurl.com/7vjmfrdy
Pharmacies of KP “Farmacia”: https://tinyurl.com/44wcz9aw
Veterinary clinics and pet stores: https://tinyurl.com/3nje8whn
Banks: https://tinyurl.com/897vy75x
Ukrposhta outlets: https://tinyurl.com/525yfyty
In addition, the mayor published a list of the pump rooms, which are powered by generators: https://tinyurl.com/bdd25kdt; a map of the pump rooms: https://tinyurl.com/yvt2zmct; and a map of the heating points: https://tinyurl.com/y6dcrcnn.
Ministry of Finance of Ukraine has submitted a proposal to the Cabinet of Ministers to increase the fee per excise tax stamp for alcoholic beverages to UAH 0.3205 from the current UAH 0.1926, and for tobacco products, tobacco-containing products for electric heating (TCHE) and e-cigarette liquids to UAH 0.1484 from UAH 0.091.
According to the text of the relevant government decree, which is available to the news agency Interfax-Ukraine, increase in price of excise stamps is necessary to compensate printing companies for the cost of their production and storage.
The Ministry of Finance in an explanatory memorandum to the draft decree states that the last time the cost of excise stamps for alcoholic beverages and tobacco products was revised more than 8 years ago and now their established value does not correspond to the actual cost of production.
For example, according to the stamp manufacturer, in 2022 alone, its costs for electricity for production are up 74% over 2021, 17% for heat, 107% for heating, 106% for hot water, and 6% for security.
“Prices per ton of paper in 2022, according to the commercial proposals of the National Bank of Ukraine, has already increased by more than 200%, and will increase in 2023 by at least 32.2% (since 2014, the price has increased 4.8 times),” the explanatory note to the draft resolution states.
In addition, the increase in the cost of energy and other resource components makes the issue of compensating the producer of stamps for the costs associated with their storage and sale relevant.
According to the document, 1.9 billion excise stamps for tobacco products and 0.56 billion stamps for alcoholic beverages will be produced by the end of 2022. At the same time for the first 9 months of this year 2.07 billion excise stamps were produced for the above products (2.91 billion in 2021).
Thus, the adoption of the draft decree would require next year for the Ukrainian producers and exporters of alcoholic beverages 71.6 million UAH (0.56 billion pieces * 0.1279 UAH) of additional costs, and for tobacco products – 108.3 million UAH (1.9 billion pieces * 0.057 UAH).
The U.S. dollar is falling against the euro, yen and pound in trading on Friday.
The euro/dollar pair is trading at $1.0647 as of 8:07 a.m. KSC on Friday, down from $1.0629 at the close of the previous session.
The pound is trading at $1.2204 by that time against $1.2179 the day before.
The cost of dollar in pair with the yen decreased to 137.25 yen, compared to 137.77 yen at the end of previous trades.
The ICE index showing the dollar’s movement against six currencies (euro, Swiss franc, yen, Canadian dollar, pound sterling and the Swedish krona) was losing 0.17%, while the broader WSJ Dollar Index lost 0.23%.
Traders continue to assess the outcome of meetings of the world’s major central banks.
The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) on Wednesday expectedly raised its key rate by 50 basis points, and central bank leaders revised upward their forecast for the rate level by the end of 2023. According to the new forecast, the rate will peak at 5-5.25%.
In addition, during the traditional press conference, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell repeatedly hinted that the Fed does not intend to proceed with rate cuts until at least early 2024.
On Thursday, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England followed suit and also raised their rates by 50bp.
Investors also analyze the statistical data published the day before from the USA that showed a bigger-than-expected decline of retail sales and an unexpected drop of industrial production in November.
U.S. retail sales in November decreased by 0.6% compared to the previous month, said the U.S. Department of Commerce. It’s the biggest drop since the beginning of the year, Trading Economics noted.
Analysts polled by Bloomberg had expected a decline of 0.2%, while Trading Economics had forecast a 0.1% decline.
Industrial production in the U.S. in November decreased by 0.2% compared with the previous month, while analysts had expected growth of 0.1%. In annual terms industrial production increased by 2.5%.
The statistical data that did not meet expectations increased fears that the Fed’s tight monetary policy could already begin to exert downward pressure on the economy, Trading Economics wrote.
Number of unemployed people registered in public employment service as of 11/01/2022 (thush people)
State employment center
The forecasted gross harvest of grain crops in Ukraine in 2023 could be 34 million tons, which is 37% less than in 2022 and 60% less than in 2021, while the yield of oilseeds is expected to be 19.3 million tons, which is 13% more than in 2022 and 15% less than in 2021.
As reported on the website of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club Association (UCAB) on Friday, such a reduction in the grain harvest is caused by the reduction of cultivated areas under crops next year by 45%, to 8.7 million hectares.
The reasons for the reduction in the grain harvest next year will be a decrease in the total sown area, a change in the structure of crops in favor of oilseeds and lower yields of grain crops.
UCAB noted that of the 28.4 million hectares under cultivation in 2021, by December 2022 there are 24.6 million hectares of agricultural land (86% of the total area) in the controlled territory of Ukraine, of which 3.8 million hectares are not suitable for agricultural work due to their proximity to the front lines, contamination by mines and shells, etc. In addition, the end of the sowing campaign of winter crops has demonstrated a significant reduction in the sown area – 3.8 million hectares of winter crops have been sown in 2022, which is 43% lower than in 2021.
UCAB stressed that the reason for this trend is the limited ability to export crops, expensive logistics and, as a consequence, a significant difference in prices of crops by region.
“The regions that are geographically close to sea ports and borders with the EU, have a higher price for agricultural products compared to the regions in the north and east of our country. For example, the price of corn with VAT in Transcarpathian region is 6800 UAH per ton, and in Sumy region – 4900 UAH. However, even in western regions the price is unprofitable. Therefore, the proximity of the border with the EU and working ports determines the ability of the relevant areas to continue grain production, “- the association specified in the message.
In turn, next 2023 will see an increase in the area under oilseeds due to their higher margins compared to grain crops and a significant increase in the logistics of grain this year.
“The price of oil-bearing crops is 2 times higher than the price of grain crops on the world market. According to preliminary estimates, the sown areas under grain crops in 2023 will be 8.7 million hectares, which is 22% less than in 2022 and 45% less than in 2021. The projected area sown with oilseeds is 9.7 million hectares, which is 32% more than in 2022 and 9% more than in 2021. For the first time, the area under oilseeds will be larger than that under grains,” the UCAB said in a statement.
In addition, next year’s average yield will decrease by 10-30%, depending on the region and crop, compared to the average yield of previous years due to a 50-60% reduction in fertilizer application, significant amounts of corn left in the fields of the 2022 crop, the lack of agribusiness funding and the need for significant resource savings.
UCAB stressed that taking into account the given gross production volumes and domestic needs of Ukraine the export potential of grains and oilseeds in 2023/24 marketing year (MY, July-June) will be about 35 million tons, or 3 million tons per month. For comparison, in 2021/22 MY export potential was at the level of 85 million tons of grains and oilseeds, or 7 million tons per month.
As reported, Ukraine in 2021 harvested a record crop of cereals, legumes and oilseeds at 106 million tons: 84 million tons of cereals and legumes, and 22.6 million tons of oilseeds.
A total of 32.4 million tons of wheat, 40 million tons of corn, 10 million tons of barley, 581.5 thousand tons of peas, 191 thousand tons of millet and 110 tons of buckwheat were harvested last year. Sunflower harvest amounted to 16.3 million tons, soybeans – 3.4 million tons and rapeseed – 2.9 million tons.
Due to the enemy-induced de-energizing of the contact network, 17 trains of Ukrzaliznytsia are already running with delays of more than 30 minutes.
As emphasized in the communication in the telegram channel UZ, at the same time:
– not a single long-distance train has been cancelled;
– if a passenger misses his trip due to alarm – he will be delivered to the next one with the same ticket;
– reserve diesel locomotives are put out to work and back up the de-energized sections;
– train stations are working on boarding and disembarking through underpasses; people are in shelters.
Trains are delayed by more than an hour:
– No. 45/46 Uzhgorod – Kharkiv (+1:46);
– №111/112 Kiev – Izyum (+1:40);
– No.149/150 Chernivtsi – Poltava-South (+1:20);
– #31/32 Peremyshl – Zaporizhzhia (+1:18);
– #21/22 Truskavets – Kharkiv (+1:17);
– No. 707/708 Kyiv – Chernihiv (+1:17);
– #15/16 Rakhiv – Kharkiv (1:15);
– #93/94 Chelm – Kharkiv (+1:15);
– №131/132 Dnipro – Lviv (+1:13);
– #119/120 Lviv – Zaporizhzhya-1 (+1:11);
– #721/722 Kyiv – Kharkiv (+1:10);
– No. 731/732 Kyiv – Dnipro (+1:07);
– No. 725/726 Kharkiv – Kiev (+1:07);
– #715/716 Peremyshl – Kiev (+1:01).
On the Odesa, Prydniprovska, and Yuzhnaya Railways, commuter trains, which are already on their way, will continue to run under diesel locomotives with a delay of up to 2 hours.
The Kiev ring train continues with delays due to power outages in several sections of the capital, but traffic across both bridges continues.
