In January-September of this year, Ukrainian companies increased exports of ferrous scrap by 54.4% year-on-year to 202,421 thousand tons from 131,131 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service on Tuesday, 24.767 thousand tons of scrap were exported in September, 28.425 thousand tons in August, 24.702 thousand tons in July, 22.161 thousand tons in June, 14.952 thousand tons in May, 26.153 thousand tons in April, 20.907 thousand tons in March, 23.194 thousand tons in February and 17.160 thousand tons in January.
In monetary terms, scrap exports increased by 71.4% to $64.703 million from $37.749 million.
In January-September, Ukraine exported scrap metal mainly to Poland (83.40%), Greece (12.81%) and Germany (3.44%).
In the first nine months of the year, the country imported 90 tons of scrap metal worth $104 thousand, while in January-September 2023, 793 tons of scrap metal worth $301 thousand were imported. This year’s imports were mainly from Turkey (68.27% in monetary terms), the British Virgin Islands (13.46%) and Panama (6.73%).
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine’s scrap collecting enterprise increased the export of scrap metal from the country by 3.4 times compared to the previous year – up to 182,485 thousand tons from 53,557 thousand tons. In monetary terms, exports increased 2.74 times to $52.723 million from $19.271 million.
Earlier, Ukrmetallurgprom President Oleksandr Kalenkov stated in an op-ed on the Interfax-Ukraine website that scrap metal is exported through the European Union, which has a preferential export duty of EUR3 per ton, and from there the raw materials are redirected to real customers. He noted that exporting raw materials directly to customers would cost EUR180 in export duties, and the Ukrainian budget has already lost UAH 350 million.
The head of Ukrmetallurgprom called for a temporary ban on the export of ferrous scrap to provide steelmakers with strategically important raw materials during the war.
He also clarified that a ton of scrap metal processed into steel brings in 10 times more to the budget than the EU export duty, which is about $300 per ton.
In 2022, Ukraine reduced exports of ferrous scrap by 11.5 times compared to the previous year, to 53,557 thousand tons, and in monetary terms, it decreased by 12.4 times, to $19.271 million.
France’s public debt at the end of the second quarter of 2024 rose to 112 percent of GDP, up from 110.5 percent at the end of March.
This was reported by the National Institute for Statistics and Economic Research (Insee).
From April to June, the debt increased by €68.9 billion, reaching €3,228.4 billion.
You can learn more about public debt and the economy in the video on the YouTube channel of the Experts Club think tank: https://youtu.be/gq7twYrWuqE
On October 17, 2024, a solemn diplomatic reception was held in Kyiv, organized by the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Ukraine on the occasion of the 79th anniversary of the country’s independence. The event was attended by numerous diplomats, government officials and distinguished guests, including Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Yevhen Perebyinis.
In his speech, the Ambassador of Indonesia to Ukraine, Mr. Arief Muhammad Basalamah, thanked the Ukrainian partners for their support and expressed his deep conviction in the importance of further development of bilateral relations between the two countries.
“We deeply value our friendship with Ukraine, which has been developing for over three decades. The importance of our diplomatic ties is emphasized by the growth of bilateral trade, which reached 443.2 million US dollars in the first eight months of 2024,” the ambassador said.
He also emphasized the symbolic significance of celebrating Indonesia’s Independence Day in Kyiv, which underscores our common commitment to freedom and peace. According to the Ambassador, the Republic of Indonesia, which unites more than 17 thousand islands, is an example of unity in diversity, which resonates with Ukrainian values.
The Ambassador paid special attention to the achievements of Indonesia under President Joko Widodo, emphasizing infrastructure reforms and economic achievements of the country.
“President Widodo has begun the transformation of Indonesia, in particular through large-scale infrastructure projects, including the construction of new roads, bridges, and airports. These efforts ensure the long-term development of our economy and facilitate its integration into global markets,” he emphasized.
Mr. Basalama also focused on the country’s digital transformation strategy: According to him, Indonesia’s digital economy is developing rapidly, opening up new opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship. The country is committed to building a knowledge economy that will allow our nation to remain competitive in the global world.
The ambassador also touched upon the issue of the new capital of Indonesia – Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN), which is being built in the province of East Kalimantan. The IKN project is a response to the challenges of the future. The new capital symbolizes the Indonesian people’s desire for sustainable development and decentralization, and will become a model of a “green city” based on the principles of sustainable development.
In addition to economic and infrastructure projects, the ambassador noted cultural and educational initiatives that deepen ties between the two countries. He emphasized the importance of cooperation in education and culture.
“Our exhibition “Indonesia through the Lens” in Lviv and Ukrainian universities, as well as the signing of a memorandum of cooperation between universities, testify to our common goal of strengthening mutual understanding between our peoples,” Arif Muhammad Basalama emphasized.
Indonesia recognized Ukraine’s independence on December 28, 1991, and diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Indonesia were established on June 11, 1992.
Arif Muhammad Basalama, Embassy of Indonesia, INDONESIA, UKRAINE
The board of Polish Getin Holding and Serhiy Tigipko’s TAS Group signed a purchase and sale agreement for Idea Bank on Friday, with the base amount of the deal amounting to $34 million, according to a press release from the group on Friday and a stock exchange announcement from the holding.
According to the statement, the buyer of 100% of the shares is Alkemi Limited (Cyprus), a member of the TAS group, and the transaction is subject to the approval of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine and the National Bank of Ukraine, and is governed by English law and the requirements of the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
Idea Bank Ukraine operates in the retail banking segment and focuses on servicing individuals. The bank’s main products are cash loans, credit cards, deposits, current accounts and debit cards. As of August 1, 2024, total assets of Idea Bank amounted to UAH 11.72 billion, ranking it 27th among 62 Ukrainian banks. Its equity capital as of that date amounted to UAH 1.74 billion, and net profit for the first seven months of this year was UAH 417.3 million.
TAS Group is one of the largest financial and industrial groups in Ukraine, which is represented in banking, insurance, railcar building, metallurgy, packaging materials, logistics, agriculture, food industry and real estate.
The group owns Universal Bank and TAScombank with assets of UAH 134.34 billion and UAH 36.62 billion, respectively, ranking 9th and 16th in the market by this indicator. The agreement stipulates that if the closing date is later than December 31, 2024, Alkemi Limited will pay Getin Holding an additional $0.8 million for each full calendar month starting from January 2025.
Idea Bank (formerly Plus Bank) was founded in 1989. In June 2020, the deal to sell Idea Bank to Ivan Svitek, former CEO of Alfa-Bank (Kyiv), and Ukrainian investment company Dragon Capital was terminated: the parties failed to agree on its commercial terms within the timeframe set by the agreement. Later, Dragon Capital and Svitek managed to buy Unex Bank from Vadym Novynskyi’s Smart Holding before the war.
In late February 2022, Getin Holding announced that it had failed to sell Idea Bank for the second time. The agreement on the terms of sale of its 100% stake to Rinat Akhmetov’s First Ukrainian International Bank (FUIB, Kyiv), signed on November 10, 2021, was terminated due to the failure to meet all the conditions for the transfer of ownership by February 25. Following the termination of the agreement with FUIB, Getin Holding abandoned its plans to sell its Ukrainian subsidiary amid Russia’s ongoing military aggression against Ukraine.
On March 27, 2023, the National Bank of Ukraine recognized the business reputation of both the Polish holding and its main owner, Czarnecki, as impeccable. In this regard, the Ukrainian regulator temporarily deprived Getin Holding of the right to vote on 100% of Idea Bank’s shares and set a one-year deadline for the holding and its main owner Leszek Czarnecki to eliminate the violation, and a year later refused to return the voting rights to the holding. In addition, the NBU approved Jacek Piechota, President of the Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce, as a trustee of Idea Bank.
In Poland, as a result of the decisions of the Bank Guarantee Fund, the Polish Idea Bank became part of Pekao Bank, while Getin Noble Bank was also put into rehabilitation, changed its name to VeloBank and was sold to the American fund Cerberus Capital Management LP at the end of March this year.
At the end of April this year, the NBU gave Getin Holding six months to sell its 100% stake in the authorized capital of Idea Bank. In addition, a similar demand was made of Mr. Charnetsky, who was required by the NBU to sell 44.98% of Idea Bank to Getin Holding within six months, offering as an alternative to sell Charnetsky’s stake in Getin Holding or LC Corp BV, which belongs to him, to LC Corp BV, which owns 34.17% of Getin Holding.
The Swiss government will provide 30 million Swiss francs (about $34.7 million) to support the work of the Geneva-based Fondation suisse de déminage (FSD) in Ukraine until 2027, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis has said.
“These are players at the forefront. We need a strategy, but above all we need the men and women who do the work and the machines. I believe that with this contribution, the Swiss Foundation will be able to significantly expand its activities,” he said at a conference on Thursday in Lausanne at the Second Annual Ukraine Mine Action Conference (UMAC-2024).
Cassis noted that with this support, the FSD will be more confident in its work, as it knows that Ukraine’s strategic mine action plan will be funded in the long term and therefore it can commit to it.
The Foreign Minister noted that such international conferences often become a catalyst for government decisions to allocate support, and expressed hope that other countries would follow the example of Switzerland, which last year also allocated CHF100 million for demining to Ukraine over four years.
“The purpose of the conference, which aims to strengthen international cooperation and support for humanitarian assistance in Ukraine, is precisely to share knowledge and best practices at the technical level and at the same time at the political level to ensure support, not only moral but also financial and strategic, for the recovery, which is not an easy task,” said Cassis.
He noted that the conference will result in a call to action.
“We don’t need new rules, we don’t need papers, we need action. And it is on this word that we would like to focus the attention of all those present here today,” the Foreign Minister emphasized.
According to him, since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale aggression, Switzerland has allocated about CHF3.7 billion to Ukraine, most of which is intended for 65 thousand Ukrainians who have been accepted by the country.
Cassis said that the Swiss government has decided to remain committed to Ukraine for the next 12 years, and expects that the country’s parliament will reconsider its decision and approve the allocation of CHF1.5 billion over the next four years for a program for Ukraine, which includes humanitarian demining, as well as recovery, digitalization, decentralization and other projects.
He added that a program for spending these funds is being prepared, which will provide a general picture of what Switzerland wants to do over the next four years.
“Some things still have to be approved by the parliament. Discussions are ongoing. I am confident that by the end of the year we will have positive decisions to maintain our support for Ukraine,” he concluded.
By the end of 2024, Ukrzaliznytsia’s branch, the Transport Logistics Center (TLC), will receive 120 units of new grain carriers of the 19-8005-U model, the center’s website reports.
“Grain carriers are designed to operate throughout the entire 1520 mm gauge railroad network and have the ability to be switched from 1520 mm gauge type 2 bogies to 1435 mm gauge bogies with screw ties and buffer devices, with a design speed of up to 120 km/h, which eliminates the need to connect coupling cars,” the Center for Transportation Logistics said.
According to the report, the grain carriers with a carrying capacity of 69.5 tons have a body volume of 104 cubic meters, size 02-VM, five loading and six unloading hatches.
