Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Roman Leshchenko proposes to reduce the VAT rate from 20% to 14% on all types of agricultural products in order to reduce the cost of socially significant food products, while the ban on exports of sunflower seeds is, in his opinion, an illegal measure.
“Responsible state policy in this case is systemic measures to reduce prices for all socially significant food products that are included in the food basket of the Ukrainian consumer. All over the world and, above all, in the EU, this is achieved by the introduction of a reduced VAT rate for such products. Our proposal is to establish a 14% VAT rate on all types of agricultural products without any exceptions,” the minister wrote on his Facebook page on Friday, April 23.
Leshchenko noted that the “Soviet” practices of administrative regulation, like the draft resolution banning exports of sunflower seeds from May 15 to September 30, 2021, published for discussion on the website of the Economy Ministry, have a negative effect in a market economy.
“The ban on sunflower exports is an illegal measure, because, according to the current legislation, the basis for its introduction is a violation of the market equilibrium. However, there is no sunflower deficit in Ukraine!” he wrote.
Leshchenko said that the export ban also creates the preconditions for a monopoly conspiracy – concerted anti-competitive actions that the state must fight against. “An attempt to reduce the cost of a separate product at the expense of Ukrainian farmers is a dangerous measure that not only threatens the development of the agricultural industry and does not solve the problem comprehensively, but can also lead to the fact that the state will be forced to compensate farmers for losses caused by such unreasonable decisions,” Leshchenko said.
The total supply of Kyiv’s office real estate market in 2020 increased by 7.7% compared to the previous year and reached 2.147 million square meters, and this year, 200,000 square meters have been announced for commissioning, according to the press service of Colliers Ukraine. As noted in the report “Offices. 2020,” in early 2020, developers announced the commissioning of more than 230,000 square meters in Kyiv of office space during the year.
“Development activity, for the most part, did not stop despite the pandemic. As in previous years, some projects were not commissioned on time and postponed to subsequent periods. The actual new supply amounted to 155,000 square meters,” the report said.
At the same time, it is noted that the volume of absorption amounted to 60,000 square meters.
Grade A offices were replenished with a total of 28,300 square meters: business center M8 (8 Moskovska Street, 11,000 square meters), business center Grand (98 Velyka Vasylkivska Street, 8,800 square meters) and business center Hillfort (12 Mykhailivska Street, 8,500 square meters). The new supply in Grade B offices amounted to 126,600 square meters, the largest of them – business center Platform (3 Krolenkivska Street, 19,800 square meters) and business center Avenue 53 (53 Prospect Peremohy, 16,700 square meters).
According to developers, new business centers with a combined lease area approximately 200,000 square meters are expected to be commissioned in 2021. In total, projects with a total area of approximately 350,000 square meters are currently under construction with the prospect of commissioning in a few years, according to developers.
Colliers Ukraine in the report cites some of the objects that are being prepared for opening in 2021: Grade A offices are represented by the first phase of business center MAG.NETT (137-139 Velyka Vasylkivska Street, 44,000 square meters), and Grade B offices – business center LUWR (2/10 Illienka Street, 27,000 square meters), business center at 23 Olenivska Street (21,000 square meters), and business center UNIT.City – B15 (3 Dorohozhytska Street, 7,500 square meters).
“Due to the need for social distancing, employee seating density in the workspace will decrease. As a consequence, emphasis on the formation of new office spaces will shift towards an increase. We can predict that the office segment will continue to develop. In all probability, office space will not be reduced but transformed,” Managing Director of Colliers Ukraine Oleksandr Nosachenko said.
Colliers International is a leading diversified professional services provider, including investment management in commercial real estate. The company’s offices are represented in 67 countries of the world.
PJSC Donbasenergo will send 30% (UAH 8.727 million) of the net profit received at the end of 2020 to pay dividends, the company has told Interfax-Ukraine, referring the results of the shareholders’ meeting held on Monday. Another 70% of last year’s profit will be channeled to the production development fund.
As reported, PJSC Donbasenergo saw a net profit of UAH 29.09 million in 2020 versus UAH 69.997 million of a net loss in 2019.
Donbasenergo owns Starobesheve TPP (located in the occupied territory) and Sloviansk TPP with a total installed capacity of 2.88 GW, including the capacity of Sloviansk TPP of 880 MW. In March 2017, the generating company announced the loss of control over the Starobesheve TPP, as well as part of the structural units located in the temporarily uncontrolled territory.
PJSC Energoinvest Holding owns 60.86% of Donbasenergo shares, another 25% of the company is owned by the state.
The most popular destinations for the May holidays were the Egyptian resorts of Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada and Marsa Alam, the Antalya and Aegean coasts of Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates, sales director of the tour operator Join UP! Maryna Daineko told Interfax-Ukraine.
For the May holidays Join UP! added point flights to Antalya, primarily from Kyiv.
“We are launching all other flights of the flight program to Turkey (from May 2 Dalaman, later Bodrum and Izmir) in the planned volume,” Daineko said.
According to her, Albania, Montenegro and Cyprus are actively booking by Ukrainians for the May holidays. At the same time, the company noted a sufficient revival in the direction of excursion tourism.
“Those who are interested in a rich historical, excursion and gastronomic program choose tours to Georgia, Armenia and the direction little-known by Ukrainians – Serbia,” Daineko said.
According to her, in general, Join UP! records an increase in demand by 25% to 30% for trips abroad on May holidays, as well as an increase in booking depth.
“If in 2019 Ukrainians ordered a tour on average 27 days before departure, then in 2020 this period was halved, to 13 days. In 2021, Ukrainians adapted to the new realities and began to actively plan and book holidays in Turkey and other countries for both May and summer,” Daineko said.
The company said that in all countries tourists will need a negative PCR test done no later than 72 hours before departure.
“The conditions of entry and return to Ukraine often change, so we recommend that you check the current information with a travel agent before booking the morning and departure,” Daineko said.
The level of the shadow economy in Ukraine in January-September 2020 amounted to 31% of GDP, which is 3 percentage points (p.p.) more compared to the same period in 2019, according to an analytical report of the Economy Ministry.
“The spread of the pandemic and the complication of the conditions for economic activity, formed as a result of the introduction of forced restrictive measures, led to the growth of the shadow economy in Ukraine. According to preliminary calculations of the Economy Ministry, the level of ‘shadow’ in January-September 2020 amounted to 31% of the volume of official GDP, which is 3 p.p. more than January-September 2019,” according to the repot posted on the ministry’s website on Wednesday.
At the same time, the ministry said that different methods show different dynamics of the level of the “shadow” in the economy, which indicates the atypical nature of the coronavirus crisis in comparison with other crisis periods.
So, of the four methods used to assess the “shadow”, the growth of its share over the nine months of last year compared to January-September 2019 was shown only by the method of unprofitability of enterprises – by 12 p.p., to 32% of GDP, according to the materials of the Economy Ministry.
Two more methods showed a reduction in the share of the shadow economy in Ukraine over the specified period: by 1 p.p., to 23% of GDP – according to the method of population expenditures – retail trade and services, and by 1 p.p., to 25% of GDP – according to the electric method.
“Considering the reasons that led to a reduction in the shadow economy by these methods, it is worth noting the presence of objective factors caused by the coronavirus crisis that limited the channels for carrying out shadow activities. In particular, in trade there was a limited possibility of selling goods on unorganized sites,” the ministry said.
As for the result of the assessment using the electric method, the decline in production due to the contraction of the world economy and the investment pause affected this, so that the reduction of the “shadow” according to this method is a purely mathematical result, the Economy Ministry said.
At the same time, according to the monetary method, the dynamics of the shadow economy in January-September 2020 remained unchanged – 31% of GDP.
As noted in the analytical report, most types of economic activity showed a tendency towards an increase in the level of the shadow economy.
In the sectoral context, the highest level of “shadow” in the past year was recorded in the sector of transport, warehousing, postal and courier activities – 54% of the gross value added of the industry, which is by 22 p.p. more than the indicator for the nine months of 2019.
In the mining industry, according to the ministry’s estimates, the level of the shadow economy increased to 39% and in real estate transactions by 14 p.p. up to 44%.
In financial and insurance activities and agriculture, the ministry recorded a decrease in the share of the “shadow” in January-September 2020 by 4 p.p., to 27% and by 2 p.p., to 30%, respectively.
Among the factors that affect the shadowing of the economy, the ministry named a low level of protection of property rights, a poor judicial system, a high level of corruption, as well as the presence of territories which are not controlled by the government.
Zaporizhia Metallurgical Plant Zaporizhstal, a member of Metinvest Group, reduced its net loss by 15.1% in 2020 compared to the previous year, to UAH 3.678 billion.
According to the company’s report, the consolidated net loss for this period decreased by 19%, to UAH 3.142 billion.
The negative financial result before tax in 2020 decreased by 9%, to UAH 4.500 billion, the consolidated pre-tax loss – by 11.8%, to UAH 3.965 billion.
At the same time, net income decreased by 1.9%, to UAH 45.631 billion, consolidated net income – by 1.8%, to UAH 45.376 billion.
Retained earnings by the end of last year amounted to UAH 13.073 billion, consolidated retained earnings – UAH 16.788 billion.
Zaporizhstal is one of the largest industrial enterprises in Ukraine, whose products are in great demand among consumers both in the domestic market and in many countries of the world. The plant specializes in high-quality hot-rolled steel coils, hot-rolled sheets, cold-rolled sheets, cold-rolled coils made of carbon and low-alloy steels, as well as steel strip, black plate, bent sections.
The main consumers of the products are manufacturers of welded pipes, enterprises of automobile, transport, agricultural engineering, manufacturers of household appliances.
