According to Experts.news, Ukraine increased its imports of transformers, inductors, and chokes by 49% in January–August 2026 compared to the same period last year—to $1.02 billion—with China accounting for nearly 88% of all shipments of these products, according to data from the State Customs Service.
Over the eight-month period, Ukraine imported $890 million worth of transformers, inductors, and chokes from China, accounting for 87.7% of total imports in this product category.
A year earlier, imports from China totaled $563.4 million, or 82.7% of Ukraine’s imports. Thus, over the course of the year, China not only significantly increased the volume of its exports but also raised its share of the Ukrainian market by approximately 5 percentage points.
Turkey and Germany remained other major suppliers. Turkey accounted for about 3% of imports, while a year earlier its share was 2.5%. Germany’s share, conversely, fell from 5.8% to 1.4%.
The growth rate of transformer equipment imports has been gradually slowing throughout 2026. In the first quarter, imports increased by 81% year-over-year; in the first half of the year, by 63%; and from January through August, growth stood at 49%.
In August 2026, Ukraine imported transformers, inductors, and chokes worth $115.7 million, which is 7.7% more than in August of last year.
The high volume of purchases of transformer equipment persists amid the need to restore and modernize Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
In March 2026, the Cabinet of Ministers removed transformers from the list of goods that could be imported on preferential terms under agreements with the EU Secretariat. In May, the European Business Association appealed to First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal with a proposal to temporarily exempt certain types of power transformers from import duties and VAT.
At the same time, Ukraine continues to export its own transformers and related electrical equipment. From January through August 2026, the value of these exports totaled nearly $24.8 million, compared to $19.9 million a year earlier. The main export markets were Germany, Poland, and Hungary.
By comparison: for the full year of 2025, Ukraine imported transformers, inductors, and chokes worth $1.12 billion, which was 88% higher than the 2024 figure. Imports from China rose 2.3-fold during that period—to $957.3 million.
Thus, in just the first eight months of 2026, the volume of Ukraine’s imports of these products approached the figure for the entire previous year, and China further solidified its status as a key supplier of transformer equipment to the Ukrainian market.
The government’s draft law “On the State Budget of Ukraine” for 2027 was registered with the Verkhovna Rada on Tuesday evening under No. 16000.
The relevant information has been published on the parliament’s website.
At this time, the text of the budget bill and accompanying materials are not yet available, nor is there a statement from the Cabinet of Ministers regarding its adoption at the meeting held on Tuesday evening.
According to the Budget Code, the government must submit the draft state budget for the following year to parliament by September 15 inclusive.
BUDGET, CABINET OF MINISTERS, DRAFT LAW, UKRAINE, VERKHOVNA RADA
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on September 15 sharply criticized the European Parliament, calling it “a den of corrupt officials.” He made the statement in Baku during a meeting with participants of international conferences. The quote is confirmed by the official transcript on the website of the President of Azerbaijan.
Aliyev referred to the Qatargate corruption scandal, which erupted in the European Parliament at the end of 2022 and was linked to former EP Vice-President, Greek politician Eva Kaili. According to him, “suitcases containing millions of dollars were seized from the home of its vice-president,” after which, Aliyev claims, the case was allegedly “hushed up.” He also accused the European Parliament of bias against Azerbaijan and Islamophobia.
At the same time, the factual circumstances of the case differ somewhat from the wording used by the Azerbaijani president. In December 2022, Belgian investigators did indeed discover about EUR1.5 million in cash as part of Qatargate, but the money was seized in several locations: about EUR150,000 in Kaili’s apartment, around EUR750,000 in a suitcase that was with her father, and another approximately EUR600,000 in the home of another person involved in the investigation.
Kaili was arrested in December 2022, lost her position as Vice-President of the European Parliament and spent some time in custody. Therefore, Aliyev’s claim that “no measures were taken” against her does not correspond to the full chronology of the case. Kaili herself denies committing any crimes.
It is also not yet possible to say that the case was closed or officially “hushed up.” As of the end of June 2026, the Belgian Qatargate investigation was continuing and had not yet reached trial. In February 2026, the Brussels Chamber of Appeal rejected procedural objections from the main suspects and allowed the investigation to continue. At the same time, the investigation has been criticized because of its duration and a number of procedural problems.
AZERBAIJAN, CORRUPTION, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, QATARGATE, Алієв
In January–August of this year, Ukraine’s ferroalloy exports decreased by 67.5% in volume terms compared with the same period last year—to 23,964 thousand metric tons from 73,774 thousand metric tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS), 4,675 thousand metric tons of ferroalloys were exported in August, 4,077 thousand metric tons in July, 6,432 thousand metric tons in June, 4,851 thousand metric tons in May, in April—2,755 thousand metric tons, in March—337 metric tons, in February—72 metric tons, and in January—765 metric tons.
In monetary terms, ferroalloy exports for January–August fell by 65.2% to $28,778 million.
In addition, over the first eight months of the year, Ukraine imported 18,337 thousand metric tons of these products—a 32.8% decrease compared to January–August 2025. In monetary terms, imports fell by 33.2% to $34.613 million.
As previously reported, the Pokrovsk Mining and Processing Plant (PGZK, formerly the Ordzhonikidze Mining and Processing Plant) and the Marganetsk Mining and Processing Plant (MGZK, both located in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast), which are part of the “Privat” Group, ceased the extraction and processing of raw manganese ore in late October–early November 2023, while the NZF and ZZF plants halted the smelting of ferroalloys. In the summer of 2024, the ferroalloy plants resumed production at a minimal level.
Since January 19, 2026, due to problems with electricity supply and high electricity prices, NZF has been idle, while ZZF has been operating at a minimal level.
In 2025, ferroalloy plants increased their exports of ferroalloys by 21.4% in volume terms compared to 2024—to 93,841 thousand metric tons—while revenue rose by 19% to $105.441 million. The main export destinations were Poland (28.69% of shipments in monetary terms), Turkey (21.62%), and Algeria (21.48%).
In 2025, Ukraine imported 38,434 thousand metric tons of this product—a decrease of 53.3% compared to 2024. In monetary terms, imports fell by 47.5% to $73.839 million. Imports came primarily from Norway (16.11%), Kazakhstan (15.89%), and France (12.56%).
Prior to the nationalization of the financial institution, PrivatBank managed the business operations of the ZZF, NZF, Stakhanov Steel Plant (located at NKT), and the Pokrovsk and Marganets Mining and Processing Plants. The Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant is controlled by the EastOne Group, formed in the fall of 2007 as a result of the restructuring of the Interpipe Group, as well as by the Privat Group.
According to the Relocation project, five Eastern Caribbean nations—Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Kitts and Nevis—plan to send a joint delegation to Brussels for negotiations on the future of citizenship-by-investment (CBI) programs, Prian reports, citing Investment Migration Insider.
Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit stated that the negotiations are scheduled to take place toward the end of September 2026, although the exact date of the meeting has not yet been agreed upon. The delegation expects to hold consultations with the leadership of the European Commission, the European Council, and the European External Action Service.
The decision to launch the joint mission was made on July 10 at a meeting of leaders from the Eastern Caribbean at Roseau, Dominica. In an official statement, the meeting participants emphasized the economic importance of investment citizenship programs for small island states and the need to take into account their dependence on CBI-related revenues.
The negotiations are taking place against the backdrop of the European Union’s hardline stance on such programs. As previously reported, on June 25, European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner sent a letter to Antigua and Barbuda proposing that the investment citizenship program be phased out by June 1, 2028, with a 24-month transition period. According to industry sources, similar demands were also sent to four other countries.
The reason for the pressure from Brussels is primarily linked to visa-free access for citizens of these countries to the Schengen Area. The updated EU mechanism allows for the existence of a program that grants citizenship in exchange for investment—without the applicant having a substantial connection to the country—to be considered grounds for suspending the visa-free regime. EU documents also emphasize the need to strengthen vetting of applicants and to phase out such schemes.
As early as September, Caribbean states are to strengthen vetting of candidates and completely exclude individuals subject to EU sanctions from these programs. At the same time, the countries are working to establish a single regional supervisory body—Eastern Caribbean Citizenship by Investment Regulatory Authority (ECCIRA). The decision to form a common regulator was adopted by five states back in 2025.
ECCIRA is expected to set common standards for vetting investors, monitor the activities of national programs, and facilitate the exchange of information between countries. The regulator’s headquarters is to be located in Grenada.
Citizenship-by-investment programs remain an important source of revenue for small Caribbean economies. Foreigners can obtain citizenship after making a specified contribution to a government fund or investing in approved projects, particularly in real estate. As of 2026, all five programs continue to accept applications, and the minimum investment threshold starts at approximately $200,000, although specific requirements vary by country.
Caribbean governments intend to persuade the EU not to abruptly terminate the programs and are proposing that the EU take into account their role in financing infrastructure, climate projects, education, healthcare, and recovery from natural disasters.
According to Skerrit, the goal of the upcoming mission is to work with Brussels to find “practical and mutually beneficial solutions” that will allow for both the EU’s security requirements and the interests of small island economies to be taken into account.
Kyiv region became the largest among the regional new housing construction markets specified by the State Statistics Service in January-June 2026, with 599.3 thousand sq. m, while 437.9 thousand sq. m were declared in Kyiv.
According to the Experts Club information and analytical center, around 9.1 thousand apartments were declared at the construction commencement stage in Kyiv region. In annual terms, the area of new construction remained virtually unchanged, decreasing by only 0.3%.
In Kyiv, the area of declared new housing decreased by 10.7% — to 437.9 thousand sq. m.
At the same time, the statistics on the number of apartments in the capital look unusual: the State Statistics Service indicates around 1.4 thousand declared apartments despite the significant total area. This may be related to the structure of specific projects and the specifics of the published data.
Lviv region became the third major market, where 501.5 thousand sq. m of housing and around 7.2 thousand apartments were declared in the first half of the year.
In Ivano-Frankivsk region, the area of new construction amounted to 248.4 thousand sq. m, decreasing by 20.5% year on year. At the same time, around 5.8 thousand apartments were declared.
In Odesa region, the figure reached 328.7 thousand sq. m and around 1.1 thousand apartments, but the State Statistics Service does not disclose comparable figures for the previous year.
Thus, in terms of the volume of declared new construction, the largest markets continue to be concentrated around Kyiv and the western regions of the country.
