“Since February 2022, Kyivstar, the largest Ukrainian telecommunications operator, has expanded its 4G coverage to more than 4.4 thousand settlements, and today its high-speed mobile Internet is available to more than 95.6% of the population in the government-controlled territory of Ukraine, up from 94.7% a year ago.
“To achieve such results, more than 18,700 modernization works were carried out and more than 7,000 new base stations were built during the full-scale invasion alone,” the company said in a press release on Thursday.
In early December 2023, Kyivstar reported that since February 2022, the coverage area of the 4G network has increased by almost 4 thousand settlements, for which the telecom operator has built 1.4 thousand new 4G base stations and updated the existing equipment by 12 thousand base stations.
It is noted that the highest 4G coverage rates are in Kyiv – 99% and Dnipro regions – 98%.
It is noted that Kyivstar currently has the largest number of 4G base stations located in Ukraine.
“The expansion of 4G coverage continues even in small towns and villages throughout Ukraine, as well as along highways. In particular, in 2024, 4G coverage was launched in 15 new settlements in Ivano-Frankivsk region, 36 in Lviv region and 38 in Vinnytsia region,” the release said.
According to the release, 225 new technology sites were built along the highways in 2024, which increased the quality of 4G coverage from more than 12 thousand km to more than 12.8 thousand km of international and national roads since December.
“Kyivstar reminded that over the next five years (from 2023 to 2027) it plans to invest $1 billion in the development and restoration of Ukraine’s digital infrastructure, as announced at the International Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine in June 2024. In particular, the additional radio frequency spectrum in the 2100 and 2300 MHz bands, for which the company paid UAH 1.43 billion at the November 19 auction held by the NCCC regulator, will be a significant boost to 4G coverage.
According to the press release, the main advantages of 4G are high data transfer speeds, stable connections and higher network capacity, which provide more comfortable conditions for users to access online services, which is important for remote work, education and telemedicine.
As reported, the number of Kyivstar 4G users increased by 4.3% in the third quarter of 2024 to 15.3 million, or 65.4% of the total subscriber base, up 4.8% percentage points year-on-year.
At the same time, Kyivstar’s mobile subscriber base decreased by 3.3% year-on-year to 23.3 million in the third quarter. The number of Ukrainians living outside Ukraine had an impact on the subscriber base, the quarterly report said.
Kyivstar’s revenue in January-September 2024 increased by 4.7% to UAH 26.86 billion, while EBITDA decreased by 2.6% to UAH 15.13 billion.
The cargo turnover of Ukrainian ports increased to 86.8 mln tons from January 1 to November 17, 2024, of which 53.5 mln tons of grain were exported, the press service of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA) reports.
According to the USPA’s Facebook post on Thursday, the key export items are sunflower oil – 5.3 million tons worth $4.4 billion, corn – 25.5 million tons worth $4.2 billion, and wheat – 19 million tons worth $3.4 billion.
Port operations are complicated by Russian aggression, mine threats, and military challenges. Despite this, Ukraine’s seaports are demonstrating record export capacity, the USPA said.
Earlier it was reported that in January-October 2024, Ukrainian ports increased cargo handling by 78.1% compared to the same period last year – up to 82.1 million tons. In October, the ports handled 8 million tons of cargo, of which 6.8 million tons, or 85%, were transshipped through the “sea corridor”. More than half of the cargo handled by ports in October was agricultural. They accounted for 5 million tons, which is almost 3.3 times more than in the same period last year.
The international chain JYSK opened a new store in Odesa in the Rodos shopping center (1 Genoese St.) on Thursday, the company’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine.
The new store has a retail area of 955 square meters, a warehouse of 216 square meters, and office space of 47 square meters. Like all new JYSK stores, it is built in accordance with the modern 3.0 concept with full spot lighting, convenient arrangement of goods, which will create a comfortable shopping experience, the company said in a statement.
The new store became the 101st store of the chain in Ukraine, which celebrated its 20th anniversary on the Ukrainian market in October. In the financial year 2025, it is planned to open eight more new stores and renovate 12 existing ones.
JYSK is part of the family-owned Lars Larsen Group with more than 3.5 thousand stores in 48 countries.
JYSK’s revenue in the financial year 2023/24 amounted to EUR 5.6 billion.
In January-September 2024, PJSC “European Insurance Alliance” (Kyiv) collected UAH 220.9 million of net premiums, which is 23.03% higher than the volume of premiums for the same period in 2023, and also increased by 10.3% the collection of gross premiums – up to UAH 254.8 million.
In the report of the Standard Rating agency on the update of the company’s financial strength rating (credit rating) for the first nine months of 2024 on the national scale at the level of “uaAA”, it is noted that revenues from individuals increased by 34.3% to UAH 78.7 million, from reinsurers – more than doubled to UAH 0.875 million.
Thus, legal entities continue to dominate the company’s client portfolio.
During the reporting period, the company paid out UAH 121.8 million in insurance claims, which is 46.1% more than in the same period a year earlier.
As of the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2024, 53.36% of the company’s liabilities were covered by equity, and 10.49% by cash and cash equivalents.
At the same time, the company has formed a portfolio of financial investments consisting of government bonds and bank deposits in the amount of UAH 83.270 million. At the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2024, liquid assets (cash, government bonds and bank deposits) covered 67.27% of the company’s liabilities.
European Insurance Alliance has been operating in the Ukrainian insurance market since 1994. The company is a member of the Audit Commission of the MTIBU, a party to the agreement on direct settlement of losses on compulsory insurance of civil liability of owners of land vehicles and a member of the Board of the Nuclear Insurance Pool of Ukraine.
The company provides 30 types of voluntary and compulsory insurance, including property, motor, liability and personal insurance.
Ukrainian tramcar manufacturer Tatra-Yug LLC (Odesa) will supply five fully low-floor three-section self-propelled tramcars worth almost UAH 480.589 million to Kyivpastrans by the end of 2025.
According to Prozorro, the parties signed the contract on November 19 and published it on Thursday following a special tender held by Kyivpastrans for an expected amount of UAH 493.071 million (including VAT), in which Tatra-Yug was the only bidder.
At the same time, Tatra-Yug’s final offer amounted to UAH 490.589 million, but by the parties’ decision, the contract was amended and its amount was reduced by UAH 10 million.
“Kyivpastrans justified the need to reduce the price by stating that the Kyiv budget amendment stipulates that UAH 174.302 million will be allocated for these purposes from the 2024 budget, and UAH 306.286 million from the 2025 budget allocations.
The tramcar produced in 2024 is 26.9 meters long, has 67 seats, one seat for a passenger in a wheelchair, and is equipped with a ramp, and there are 8 gadget charging devices in the cabin.
In addition, the vehicle has an autonomous range of at least 1.5 thousand meters on a horizontal straight section.
The terms and conditions provide for 100% cash on delivery within five business days.
According to Tatra-Yug, the degree of localization of the three-section tramcar K1T306 is 72.8%.
“Tatra-Yug has been a major Ukrainian manufacturer of LRVs, trams and equipment since 1993. As noted in the press release, the company is an ideological follower of the world’s largest tram manufacturing company, the Czech TATRA, founded in 1927. Tatra-Yug’s portfolio includes six tram models and tram equipment,
The company produces tramcars at Pivdenmash’s facilities in Dnipro.
Kyiv has been purchasing Tatra-Yug trams since 2021.
As reported, in 2023, 8 Tatra-South trams on route 33, connecting Troyeschyna and Darnytsia, entered service, and several more have been running since December on route 8 from Lesnaya metro station to Poznyaki metro station.
Issue No. 1 for November 2024
The global currency market was shaken by Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election, which created a wave of expectations and uncertainty.
The real balance of power will become clearer only after the first practical steps of the new administration, which will indicate the key vectors of the US economy, determine their global influence on allied countries and blocs, and show the policy of influencing the US global competitors outside the Western world.
Currently, there are no fundamental economic reasons for significant exchange rate corrections, and what we are seeing in the global context in the currency and cryptoasset markets is more like “fussing on deck waiting for the weather to change,” although there is no clear forecast or signs of change, everything is based on more or less probable assumptions, expectations, and faith.
Now is not the best time to formulate medium-term currency strategies. However, if you have developed speculative skills and a taste for risk, you can make money from speculation in a period of high uncertainty in the currency markets.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is experiencing record demand for foreign currency, which is also driven more by global processes and the far from optimistic expectations of households and businesses. The real need for foreign currency can only exist and grow in the shadow sector, where some business operations are moved in the face of economic and tax uncertainty, infrastructure and economic risks. However, the real needs for foreign currency for import-oriented sectors are within normal limits.
Thus, Ukraine’s FX market remains under pressure from psychological factors, although fundamental macroeconomic indicators do not yet provide grounds for strong devaluation pressure and abrupt exchange rate movements. The only certainty is that we will see further gradual devaluation of the hryvnia, at least in the current security and economic environment.
The combination of these factors is pushing citizens to transfer their savings into foreign currency instruments, and many are focused on cryptocurrencies.
Dollar exchange rate forecast
As we predicted earlier, the US dollar exchange rate remained relatively stable in November with minor fluctuations. The average buying rate fluctuated between 41.20 and 41.35 UAH/$, and the selling rate between 41.65 and 41.75 UAH/$. The official NBU exchange rate remained at UAH 41.20-41.35/$ amid no significant interventions by the regulator.
The spread between the bid and ask rates remained stable at UAH 0.40-0.50/$, reflecting the fragile economic equilibrium and the balance between supply and demand.
Outlook:
Euro exchange rate forecast
As expected, the euro continues to show a steady downward trend after reaching peak levels of 46.18-45.6 UAH/€ in October. In the second decade of November, the average euro exchange rate corrected from 45.25-44.67 UAH/€ to 44.65-44.1 UAH/€.
The downward spread between buying and selling euros remained relatively flat at UAH 0.55-0.65/€, indicating that FX market operators are trying to keep an additional premium on the increased demand for the euro, while the purchase of euros from households and businesses is closer to the official NBU rate, the unwillingness of FX market operators to take on currency risk in the event of a reverse “rebound” in the euro, which may be due to new signals from key players in the global economic system.
Forecast:
Future factors influencing the Ukrainian currency market
The key ones still dominate:
Negative:
Positives:
Recommendations on currency transactions
This material was prepared by the company’s analysts and reflects their expert, analytical professional judgment. The information presented in this review is for informational purposes only and cannot be considered as a recommendation for action.
The Company and its analysts make no representations and assume no liability for any consequences arising from the use of this information. All information is provided “as is” without any additional guarantees of completeness, obligations of timeliness or updates or additions.
Users of this material should make their own risk assessments and informed decisions based on their own assessment and analysis of the situation from various available sources that they consider to be sufficiently qualified. We recommend that you consult an independent financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
REFERENCE
KIT Group is an international multi-service product FinTech company that has been successfully operating in the non-banking financial services market for 16 years. One of the company’s flagship activities is currency exchange. CIT Group is one of the largest operators in this segment of the Ukrainian financial market, is among the largest taxpayers, and is one of the industry leaders in terms of asset growth and equity.
More than 90 branches in 16 major cities of Ukraine are located in convenient locations for customers and have modern equipment for the convenience, security and confidentiality of each transaction.
The company’s activities comply with the regulatory requirements of the NBU. CIT Group adheres to EU standards, having a branch in Poland and planning cross-border expansion to European countries.
