Ukrainian metallurgical enterprises increased production of total rolled steel in January-August this year by 26.6% year-on-year, up to 4.318 million tons from 3.410 million tons, according to preliminary data.
According to Ukrmetallurgprom on Tuesday, steel production for the period increased by 30.8% to 5.274 million tons, and pig iron by 21.1% to 4.732 million tons.
In August, the company produced 589.3 thousand tons of rolled products, 690.7 thousand tons of steel, and 643.6 thousand tons of pig iron, compared to 588.6 thousand tons of rolled products, 708.9 thousand tons of steel, and 621.4 thousand tons of pig iron in the previous month.
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine increased production of total rolled products by 0.4% compared to 2022 to 5.372 million tons, but reduced steel production by 0.6% to 6.228 million tons, and pig iron by 6.1% to 6.003 million tons.
In 2022, Ukraine reduced production of total rolled products by 72% compared to 2021, to 5.350 million tons, steel by 70.7% to 6.263 million tons, and pig iron by 69.8% to 6.391 million tons.
In 2021, the company produced 21.165 million tons of pig iron (103.6% compared to 2020), 21.366 million tons of steel (103.6%), and 19.079 million tons of rolled products (103.5%).
Population structure of Ukraine (data from Ukrainian institute of future)
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German authorities on Monday announced a decision to introduce temporary control at all land borders of the country starting September 16 to reduce the flow of illegal migrants, the Associated Press reports citing the German Interior Ministry.
“The ministry has informed the European Union of the decision to introduce border controls on the land borders with France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark for six months,” the agency reports.
“We are strengthening our internal security by taking concrete measures and continue to take a tough stance against illegal migration,” German Interior Minister Nancy Feser said.
Earlier, Germany also introduced controls at the borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria and Switzerland.
Germany is a member of the Schengen zone, whose members abolish border controls on internal borders. However, in case of emergency, this control is allowed to be restored for a certain period of time.
Demand for building materials slowed in 2024 after a significant increase last year due to low consumer solvency and insufficient funding for government recovery programs, the Association of Manufacturers of Building Materials noted.
“In general, in terms of estimated volumes, the first half of 2024 almost correlates with the figures for 2023, meaning that there was no miracle in the increase in demand. Sales of specific products today directly depend on the activity of small private developers. Large and truly solvent public or private consumers of wholesale volumes exist in single copies,” Konstantin Saliy, President of the All-Ukrainian Union of Building Materials Manufacturers, told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, individuals make up the bulk of real sales of building materials for which payment has been completed. At the same time, the programs “5-7-9”, “eHouse” and “eRecovery” stimulate unstable increases in demand, which allow keeping the sales of materials at the level of 27-50% of pre-war 2021, the expert noted.
“Under such conditions, the market climate is not expected to improve until the end of 2024,” added Saliy.
Meanwhile, the demand for aerated concrete is driven mainly by apartment construction, which is supported by recovery programs, said Oleg Syrotin, director of the All-Ukrainian Association of Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Producers.
“Today, the demand for aerated concrete has decreased by almost 60% compared to the pre-war period. The main consumer of our products, individuals, are hardly building any houses. The industry is surviving mainly due to multi-apartment construction, in particular through government programs for restoration and compensation to the affected people,” he said.
According to the expert, the growth in demand would be positively affected by the expansion of the eHouse state program to low-rise projects of small developers, as this sector was the main consumer of aerated concrete before the war.
“Aerated concrete is used in new construction, so the state program eHouse is the most effective for us. The second most effective program is eRestoration for severely damaged facilities where new walls need to be built. The impact of these programs is certainly positive, but we would like to see more financial resources from the state and banks for them,” explained Syrotin.
According to Ukrcement, cement consumption in January-June 2024 increased to 3 million tons, up 21.3% year-on-year. At the same time, the association’s forecast for the rest of the year is restrained.
“The biggest problem for cement producers is demand. Demand for products has fallen sharply, which means that revenues have also fallen, while costs, on the contrary, are rising. The forecast for cement consumption in 2024 is quite restrained. We had a significant jump in 2023. We produced 7.4 million tons of cement. This year we had a difficult summer in terms of electricity. Therefore, if we reach 8 million tons this year, it will be a very good result,” explained Lyudmyla Krypka, Executive Director of Ukrcement Association.
Demand is significantly affected by the situation at the frontline, as well as government support for the industry, the expert noted. According to her, the policy of subsidies and additional benefits from the state is important to ensure the stable development of the market.
Lemtrans, Ukraine’s largest private rail transportation operator, has completed the first stage of construction of the Vinnytsia container terminal, the company’s press service said on Monday.
“Lemtrans Group has completed the first stage of construction and opened the Vinnytsia container terminal. As part of this stage, a new infrastructure was created: railroad tracks were laid, a container yard with a capacity of up to 2000 TEU was equipped, and a covered warehouse with an area of 3,500 square meters was built,” the statement said.
The total area of the terminal is 8 hectares, and its throughput capacity is 30 thousand TEU per year.
Modern equipment and infrastructure of the terminal provide a significant acceleration of cargo handling, the company said.
“We are creating new opportunities, as the emergence of such a terminal in the region opens up access to global logistics for cargo owners, both large and small. This means that exporters and importers no longer depend on the size of the consignment or the influence of global trading companies,” the statement quoted Dmytro Balaba, CEO of Container Terminal Vinnytsia, as saying.
The opening of the Vinnytsia container terminal is an important step for the further economic development of the region – investments in the project amounted to about $15 million, the report says.
It is also reported that the terminal has already received the first train, formed in cooperation with UZ CARGO POLAND and the Liski Transport Service Center. The first batch of cargo exceeded 60 TEU. The regular service will connect the Polish port of Gdansk with the terminal in Vinnytsia.
According to Vinnytsia Mayor Serhiy Morgunov, container transportation will allow Vinnytsia community to expand cooperation with other regions of Ukraine and, at the same time, with other European countries.
“We are talking about creating new jobs, increasing the competitiveness and sustainability of our community,” Morgunov said in a statement.
Short-term rains with thunderstorms will be held on Tuesday, September 10, in the eastern, south-eastern, Volyn, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Transcarpathian regions, in the rest of the territory without precipitation, reports Ukrhydrometcenter. The wind is predominantly southeastern, 5-10 m/s. The temperature at night is 10-15°C, on the coast of the seas up to 17°C; in the daytime 24-29°C, in Prykarpattya and Transcarpathia 17-22°C.
In Kiev on Tuesday – dry, wind southeast, 5-10 m/s, temperature at night 12-14°C, daytime 25-27°C.
According to the Central Geophysical Observatory named after Borys Sreznevsky in Kiev. Borys Sreznevsky in Kiev on September 10, the highest daytime temperature was 31.2°C in 1909, the lowest nighttime temperature was 4.1°C in 1968.
On Wednesday, September 11, at night in Transcarpathia, Carpathians and Carpathian region, during the day in the western, northern and central regions in some places short-term rains, thunderstorms; in the rest of the territory without precipitation. The wind is predominantly southeastern, 5-10 m/s.
Temperatures in western regions at night 10-15°C, during the day 17-22°C; in the rest of the country at night 15-20°C, in the south of the country up to 23°C, during the day 24-29°C, in the east and south of the country in some places up to 32°C.
Weather forecast for Kiev on September 11 – short-term rain in places, thunderstorms, no precipitation at night. The wind is predominantly southeastern, 5-10 m/s. The temperature is 15-17°C at night and 26-28°C during the day.
