Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

Elworthy JSC plans to increase sales by 25% in 2025

Elworthy JSC, a major Ukrainian manufacturer of sowing and tillage equipment based in Kropyvnytskyi, plans to increase its sales by 25% in 2025 compared to 2024, to UAH 712 million.

These plans are contained in the company’s interim report for 2024. The company also plans to break even.

The report does not contain the company’s financial indicators for the whole of 2024, but according to the data published in it for January-September 2024, the loss decreased by almost 4.8 times compared to the same period in 2023 – to UAH 12.45 million, with a slight increase in revenue – to UAH 424.2 million.

In addition, the interim report states that in the fourth quarter of 2024, revenue amounted to UAH 146.321 million, with an export share of 25.9%. The main export markets are Eastern Europe and Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan).

Seeders account for the largest share in sales (153 units for UAH 49.6 million in the fourth quarter), followed by cultivators (72 units for UAH 17.5 million), construction and road machines (4 units for UAH 11.15 million), sprayers (14 units for UAH 8 million), and harrows (36 units for UAH 7.9 million). The company also produced spare parts worth UAH 15.12 million.

Elworthy JSC considers its main competitors in the production of agricultural machinery to be, among others, Ukrainian companies Veles-Agro, Belotserkovmaz, Favorit, Promagroleasing-Ukraine, Remsyntez, Agromash Kalyna, Boguslavska Sihosptekhnika, LKMZ, and Maschio Gaspardo (Italy).

The company has a dealer network of 35 centers located both in Ukraine and abroad. They are authorized as service centers, which allows them to provide maintenance services in addition to selling equipment.
“2024 was an extremely difficult year for Ukraine’s agricultural sector, in particular due to the lack of precipitation in the second half of the year, which led to a decrease in the amount of harvest and an increase in its cost. At the same time, the ability of farmers to make money on this harvest will depend on the world prices at which they will be able to sell their products, which are also subject to uncertainty,” the report says.

In addition, Elworthy pointed to the risk that with a smaller harvest, prices for agricultural products may not rise, agricultural producers will receive less marginal income and will not be able to purchase agricultural machinery.

Elvorti JSC, a part of the Elvorti Group owned by businessman Pavlo Stutman, specializes in the production of sowing and tillage equipment: seeders for sowing grain and row crops, cultivators for continuous and inter-row tillage, and disk harrows for resource-saving tillage.

In recent years, the company has mastered a new type of product – the Elex backhoe loader.

According to the company, in 2023, it suffered an 81.6% year-on-year loss of UAH 85.9 million, with net income falling by 34.3% to UAH 490.7 million.

At the beginning of 2025, the company employed 372 people.

Ukraine exported 29.2 mln tonnes of grains since beginning of 2024-2025 marketing year

As of March 3, Ukraine exported 29.202 mln tonnes of grains and pulses since the beginning of 2024-2025 marketing year (MY, July-June), of which 84 thsd tonnes were shipped this month, the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food reported, citing the data of the State Customs Service.

According to the report, as of March 4 last year, the total shipments amounted to 29.951 mln tonnes, including 270 thsd tonnes in March.

In terms of crops, since the beginning of the current season, Ukraine has exported 12.014 million tons of wheat (31 thousand tons in March), 2.126 million tons of barley (0), 10.8 thousand tons of rye (0), and 14.62 million tons of corn (53 thousand tons).

The total export of Ukrainian flour since the beginning of the season as of February 26 is estimated at 47.8 thsd tonnes (4.2 thsd tonnes in February), including 44.1 thsd tonnes of wheat (3.9 thsd tonnes).

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China breaks export record in early 2025, imports fall

China’s exports in January-February 2025 reached a record $540 billion, up 2.3% year-on-year, Bloomberg reports. However, the country’s imports unexpectedly fell by 8.4%, leading to a significant trade surplus of $171 billion.

According to analysts, the growth in exports is partly due to accelerated deliveries as Chinese companies seek to circumvent possible new trade barriers from the United States. The U.S. administration is considering additional tariffs on Chinese goods, which could affect the competitiveness of Chinese products.

China remains the largest exporter in the world, supplying products to a wide range of industries. Among the key export products:
Electronics and technology – smartphones, computers, semiconductors.

Machinery – industrial machines, cars and components.
Consumer goods – clothing, footwear, household appliances.

Metals and chemicals – aluminum, steel, plastics.
Renewable energy – solar panels, lithium-ion batteries.

Services – IT development, digital platforms, logistics.
The drop in imports may indicate weak domestic demand, as well as China’s desire to develop self-sufficiency in strategic industries.

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UK residential property prices rose by 2.9% in February

British residential property prices rose by 2.9% year-on-year in February, the slowest pace since July last year, according to consultancy Halifax. Analysts surveyed by Trading Economics had on average expected a 3.1% rise.

The revised data also showed a rise of 2.9% in January, rather than the 3% previously announced.

In monthly terms, prices fell 0.1% after rising 0.6% in January.

As a result, the average cost of a property in the country was 298,602 thousand pounds ($385,400).

“February’s data reflects the balance of the British housing market,” said Amanda Bryden, head of Halifax’s mortgage division. – The frenzied demand for mortgages ahead of April’s rise in government fees is waning. Despite the housing affordability challenge, market activity remains strong and prices are expected to rise moderately this year on the back of tight supply and steady demand.”

 

German airport workers will hold one-day strike on March 10

Verdi, the united union of service workers, which includes employees at Germany’s largest airports, has called on its members for a one-day warning strike on March 10. The union is forced to resort to protest action because of employers’ unwillingness to meet workers’ demands in collective bargaining, it said in a statement posted on its website.

The union is seeking an 8 percent wage increase, or at least 350 euros a month, as well as an increase in bonuses for heavy work and additional days off.

The protests will affect 11 airports, including Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin.

Germany’s airport association ADV warned that the strike could disrupt the plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers.

“Holding strikes at 11 airports simultaneously cuts off an entire country from air traffic,” said ADV managing director Ralf Beisel. – “We urge Verdi to take the interests of passengers into account and seek a negotiated settlement.

“The economic damage caused by such strikes is enormous and affects not only the airline industry, but the entire economy in an already extremely strained economic situation,” he added.

Apart from airlines and airports, other industries will also be affected due to flight cancellations and delays. Hotels, caterers and retailers in the affected regions could suffer significant revenue losses. When flights are canceled or delayed, the entire supply chain also suffers, according to a statement published on the ADV website.

 

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Forest industry of Ukraine received almost UAH 24 bln in net income in 2024

In 2024, the forestry industry received a record net income of UAH 23.7 billion from sales of products, continuing to implement a number of digitalization projects and invest in forestry, including the construction of forest roads and seed plants, amid the temporary occupation of part of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, mining and hostilities.

During a public report, among the industry’s achievements, the head of the State Agency of Forest Resources, Viktor Smal, noted the positive effect of introducing transparent rules and equal opportunities for all timber market participants by transferring timber sales to licensed exchanges, which made it possible to conclude long-term contracts and bring contract fulfillment to 95%, the agency’s Facebook page said on Friday.

According to the head of the State Forestry Agency, in 2024, approximately 12.7 million cubic meters of timber worth UAH 23 billion were supplied to the domestic market, which is 0.8 million cubic meters and UAH 2.5 billion more than in 2023. The average cost of 1 cubic meter of timber sold last year remained almost at the level of the previous year – it increased by only 5%, to UAH 1,810.

Smal emphasized that the industry continues to digitize control over the movement of wood. He cited data from the BRDO’s Better Regulation Delivery Office, according to which the e-felling ticket and e-certificate of origin have become the largest digitized permits in Ukraine. The introduced digital tools helped businesses save UAH 150 million. At the same time, the mechanism of photo fixation of timber and the improvement of the electronic timber accounting system (ETS) have provided a new level of transparency in this area, according to the State Forestry Agency.

“Our goal is to radically change the very idea of controlling the movement of wood. The development of the second-generation version of the EOD will allow us to extend this system to woodworkers and significantly improve control over the movement of wood,” emphasized Smal.

In addition, in Ukraine in 2024, new forests were planted on 35.2 thousand hectares of restored forests on a total area of 6.1 thousand hectares. At the same time, 238.3 million pieces of planting material were planted in the country. Last year, 175.4 million standard seedlings were grown to ensure silvicultural operations in 2025, including 11.2 million seedlings with a closed root system.

At the same time, Ukraine continues to work on preserving self-seeded forests: In 2024, 54 thousand hectares of land were granted the status of self-forested. The transfer of 38 thousand hectares of self-seeded forests to the forest fund of Ukraine has been agreed, and property rights have been registered for an area of 10.9 thousand hectares.

Smal noted that the State Forestry Agency has developed a number of regulations that change approaches to work in the industry. In particular, these include the regulation of military felling and close-to-nature forestry, the abandonment of clear felling in the Carpathian region, the typology of felling types, the regulation of measures related to forestry, etc.