Ukrainian companies increased imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 21.1% to $333.056 million in January-September this year ($40.325 million in September).
According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, exports of aluminum and aluminum products in the first nine months of 2024 increased by 30.3% year-on-year to $93.318 million ($10.352 million in September).
In 2023, exports of aluminium and aluminium products increased by 0.7% compared to 2022 to $97.616 million.
Aluminum is widely used as a structural material. The main advantages of aluminum are its lightness, stamping resistance, corrosion resistance, high thermal conductivity, and non-toxicity of its compounds. In particular, these properties have made aluminum extremely popular in the production of cookware, aluminum foil in the food industry, and packaging. The first three properties have made aluminum the main raw material in the aviation and aerospace industries (recently it has been replaced by composite materials, primarily carbon fiber). After the construction and production of packaging, such as aluminum cans and foil, the energy sector is the largest consumer of the metal.
In January-September this year, Ukrainian enterprises increased imports of nickel and its products by 65.2% compared to the same period in 2023 to $19.219 million (in September – $619 thousand).
In the first nine months of 2024, exports of nickel and nickel products amounted to $508 thousand (in September, they were absent), while in January-September 2023 they amounted to $256 thousand. In 2023, Ukraine reduced imports of nickel and nickel products by 74.2% compared to 2022, to $15.391 million.
Nickel is used to produce stainless steel and for nickel plating. Nickel is also used in the production of batteries, powder metallurgy, and chemicals.
Ukrainian companies increased imports of copper and copper products by 16% in value terms in January-September this year, up to $104.483 million, compared to the same period last year.
According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine on Tuesday, exports of copper and copper products increased by 19.1% to $65.514 million over the period under review.
In September, the country imported copper worth $11.659 million and exported it for $7.290 million.
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine increased imports of copper and copper products by 2.2 times compared to 2022 – up to $140.795 million, while exports decreased by 20.1% to $72.078 million.
Copper is widely used in electrical engineering, pipe manufacturing, alloys, medicine and other industries.
In January-June 2024, VUSO Insurance Company (Kyiv) collected UAH 1.395 billion in gross premiums, which is 17.38% more than in the same period in 2023, RA Standard Rating reported in information on the confirmation of the company’s financial strength rating at uaAA on the national scale. According to the rating agency’s website, the insurer’s revenues from individuals increased by 7.06% to UAH 884.291 million, and from reinsurers – by 43.05% to UAH 18.401 million. Thus, the share of individuals in the insurer’s gross written premiums in the first half of 2024 amounted to 63.39%, and the share of reinsurers amounted to 1.32%.
Insurance payments sent to reinsurers for the specified reporting period compared to January-June last year increased by 84.14% to UAH 171.987 million, the reinsurer participation ratio increased by 4.47 percentage points (p.p.) to 12.33%.
The company’s net written premiums for the first half of the year increased by 11.68% to UAH 1.223 billion, and earned premiums – by 21.31% to UAH 1.251 billion.
In January-June 2024, VUSO paid UAH 722.269 million to its clients, which is 64.64% higher than the volume of insurance payments and reimbursements for the same period in 2023. The claims ratio increased by 14.87 p.p. to 51.78%.
At the same time, the company’s financial results have improved significantly: profit from operating activities in the first half of 2024 amounted to UAH 101.017 million, and net profit increased 21.97 times to UAH 34.709 million compared to the same period a year earlier.
As of July 1, 2024, the insurer’s assets decreased by 0.59% to UAH 1.515 billion, while equity showed an increase of 5.62% to UAH 651.966 million. At the same time, the company’s liabilities decreased by 4.81% to UAH 863.513 million, while cash and cash equivalents increased by 0.04% to UAH 557.732 million.
RA notes that as of the reporting date, the company formed a portfolio of investments in domestic government bonds in the amount of UAH 231.140 million, which in total covered 91.36% of the company’s liabilities. The balance of funds in the centralized insurance reserve funds (MTIBU) of the insurer amounted to UAH 311.823 million.
VUSO Insurance Company was founded in 2001. The company holds 50 licenses: 34 – for voluntary and 16 – for compulsory types of insurance, and is represented in all regions of Ukraine. VUSO is a member of the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) and the Ukrainian Insurance Federation (UIF), as well as a participant in the Direct Claims Settlement Agreement and a member of the Nuclear Insurance Pool.
Global public debt may exceed $100 trillion (93% of global GDP) in 2024, according to the Fiscal Monitor report published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday.
It is expected to continue to grow in the medium term and may rise to 100% of GDP by 2030.
At the same time, under the most unfavorable scenario, global debt could be almost 20 percentage points higher than the baseline forecast and reach 115% of GDP in 2026.
“Debt stabilization (or reduction) is likely to require much more significant fiscal adjustments than currently planned. Now is the right time to restore fiscal buffers, and delaying them is costly,” the report says.
The IMF believes that public debt will continue to grow in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, France, Italy, and South Africa.
“While debt is projected to stabilize or decline in about two-thirds of countries, it will remain well above levels projected before the pandemic,” the report says. Moreover, the countries that are not expected to stabilize account for more than half of the world’s debt and about two-thirds of global GDP.
Government spending to address the problems of the “green transition” in the energy sector, population aging and security issues is likely to increase fiscal pressure in the coming years, according to the Fund’s experts.
“It’s time for governments to get their act together,” said Era Dabla-Norris, IMF Deputy Director for Fiscal Affairs. – “All countries need a strategic turnaround to reduce debt risks.
For more information about public debt and possible country defaults, please watch the video on the YouTube channel of the Experts Club think tank: https://youtu.be/gq7twYrWuqE?si=0WcmU20F95oeVKZp
Insurers in 2024 will focus on increasing investment in private markets, clean energy infrastructure and innovative technologies. According to the Reinsurance News website, this is according to the 13th annual Global Insurance Report by asset management company BlackRock.
For the third consecutive year, the report found that the majority of insurers plan to increase private market allocations, with 91% of respondents indicating they will do so in the next two years.
That figure reaches 96% for insurers in Asia Pacific and North America. The report is based on information from 410 insurance investors in 32 markets managing approximately $27 trillion in assets.
“With 2024 expected to be a landmark election year, insurers are increasingly concerned about how political uncertainty could impact macroeconomic risks, citing regulatory changes (68%) and rising geopolitical tensions and fragmentation (61%) as top concerns,” the report notes.
In addition, market risks such as interest rate volatility (69%) and liquidity problems (52%) were identified as critical.
Despite these challenges, 74% of insurers have no plans to change their current risk profiles. Many insurers cited the value of partnerships in improving their internal expertise for risk assessment and portfolio management, with 40% of respondents emphasizing that an investment partner that understands both their insurance business and operating model is critical to achieving their strategic goals.
In the public markets, 42% of insurers plan to increase investments in government and agency bonds, while 33% focus on inflation-linked bonds, as 46% view inflation as a significant macroeconomic risk. In addition, 44% of insurers are looking to increase their holdings in cash and short-term instruments to maintain liquidity.
BLACKROCK, clean energy, INNOVATION, INSURERS, INVESTMENT, private markets
