In Ukraine, oil flax remains a niche crop, but its gross harvest in the 2025-2026 marketing year (MY) will amount to 66 thousand tons, which is the highest result since the 2017/18 MY, according to the information and analytical publication UkrAgroConsult.
“Production is subject to fluctuations influenced by market factors and weather conditions. Since 2020, there has been a steady expansion of acreage. Growth is driven by demand from the EU, the main importer of flax. (…) The combination of expanded acreage and improved yields has been decisive. In the 2024/25 MY, there has been a partial recovery in yields, which are still below the crop’s potential,” analysts explained.
Experts noted that exports remain a key driver of the market — more than 80% of the Ukrainian flax harvest in 2024/25 MY is sent abroad. During the years of war, this share has more than doubled.
The main destination for flax sales is the EU (Italy, Poland, and Belgium are the top importers). After the start of the full-scale war, EU countries significantly reduced their purchases of Russian flax, reorienting themselves to alternative suppliers from Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Canada.
At the same time, after peaking in 2023/24 MY (over 70 thousand tons), shipments from Ukraine decreased by approximately 24% in 2024/25 MY.
“The Ukrainian oil flax market is entering a phase of stable recovery. The crop is gradually regaining its position in the crop structure, forming a new niche for small and medium-sized agricultural producers. With support for exports and the development of processing, flax has the potential to establish itself as a promising alternative crop for the northern regions of the country, which are increasingly facing weather risks,” UkrAgroConsult concluded.
Austrian artist Gustav Klimt’s “Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer” was sold at a Sotheby’s auction in New York for $236.4 million, according to Bloomberg.
The portrait, painted between 1914 and 1916 and completed two years before the artist’s death, became the most expensive work of modern art and the second most expensive painting ever sold at auction. The buyer’s name has not been disclosed.
Elisabeth Lederer is the daughter of Austrian businessman August Lederer. During the occupation of Austria, she pretended to be Klimt’s daughter to hide her Jewish origins. The Nazis stole the portrait from her family, but in 1948 the painting was returned, after which it was sold to art dealer Serge Sabarsky in 1983. In 1985, the painting was purchased by Leonard Lauder, son of the founders of the Estee Lauder brand, who remained the owner of the painting until his death at the age of 92 in June this year.
Another 23 lots from the Lauder collection were sold at auction, including a drawing by Vincent van Gogh and a bronze statuette by Henri Matisse, for a total of $527.5 million.
In October 2025, the Alliance Novobud development company continued active construction work on the Montreal House project in Kyiv and the Krona Park II and Lesovy Kvartal residential complexes in Brovary (Kyiv region), according to a report on construction progress on the company’s website.
According to the information, in the capital’s Montreal House project (102 Bolshaya Vasylkivska Street/83 Antonovycha Street), plastering work and the installation of cement screed on standard floors and in common areas, as well as facade insulation, continued in blocks 1 and 2 in October. In block 3, electrical cables were laid along the risers of “cold passages” and stairwells. In block 4, the installation of translucent aluminum structures continued (65% complete) and cables were laid along the risers and stairwells.
At the Montreal House parking lot, the waterproofing of the upper slab in the inner courtyard area has been completed, the installation of storm sewer pipes is continuing, and the waterproofing of the stylobate slab on the side of Bolshaya Vasilkovskaya Street has begun. The tower crane has also been dismantled to carry out the next set of works, and a metal frame for the entrance canopy on the side of Antonovycha Street has been installed.
At the Krona Park II residential complex (Brovary, Vasyl Simonenko Street, 32), the insulation of the basement walls was completed in October in building 5, backfilling of the foundation cavities continues, roofing work and installation of PVC windows are underway (windows have been installed from the 2nd to the 10th floors, with work continuing on the 11th and 12th floors). In building 8, the installation of internal water supply and heating engineering networks has begun, the installation of internal power supply and lighting networks is continuing, connection to external heat and water supply networks is being carried out, as well as facade work: section No. 1 is 95% complete, section No. 2 is 75% complete, and section 3 is 45% complete.
In building 9 of Krona Park II, the finishing touches are being made to the common areas and the landscaping of the surrounding area, commissioning work is underway, and the preparation of the documentation package for the completion certificate has begun. In building 10, finishing work has begun in common areas and apartments, and the installation of internal plumbing, electrical, and lighting networks is continuing. In building 12, roofing work has been completed in sections 1 and 2, and the installation of PVC windows is continuing (installed up to the 9th floor of section 1, work is underway on the 10th and 11th floors). In buildings 14 and 16, the pile field has been completed, with 100% of the bored piles installed.
At the Lesovy Kvartal site, building No. 16 (Brovary, V. Chornovola Street), vertical monolithic structures were erected in sections 2.2, 2.1, and 1 in October, and work began on the construction of brick walls.
The company specifies that work on the sites in Kyiv and Brovary is at different stages – from the pile field and monolith to the finishing touches and preparation for commissioning, while the developer is keeping to the schedule and continuing to move the projects towards completion in stages.
Alliance Novobud is a development company that has been operating in the residential real estate market of Kyiv and the Kyiv region for over 18 years. The developer specializes in comfort+ and business-class projects, with key projects including Montreal House and Illinsky House in Kyiv, as well as Krona Park II, Lesovy Kvartal, Zeleny Kvartal, Madison Gardens, and Lavandovy in Brovary.
According to industry ratings, Alliance Novobud was among the top 20 largest developers in Kyiv and the region in terms of the number of apartments completed in 2024 (481 apartments in five buildings, with a market share of about 2.2%). The company is a winner of the UKRAINIAN SPECIAL BUILDING AWARDS IBUILD and Business of the Year professional awards, and was named “Developer of the Year” and “Residential Complex of the Year” for the Montreal House and Krona Park II projects.
Alliance Novobud, Forest Quarter, Krona Park II, Montreal House
According to the results for January-September of this year, PJSC Yuzhkox (Kamensk, Dnipropetrovsk region) increased its net loss by 4.6 times compared to the same period last year, from UAH 98.684 million to UAH 457.760 million.
According to the company’s interim report, which is available to Interfax-Ukraine, revenue for this period decreased by 12.6% to UAH 6 billion 634.975 million.
In the third quarter of 2025, the loss amounted to UAH 97.327 million, and revenue amounted to UAH 2 billion 94.168 million.
The company’s uncovered loss at the end of September 2025 amounted to UAH 9.127 million.
As reported, Yuzhkoks increased its net loss by 4.7 times compared to the previous year, to UAH 272.925 million from UAH 58 million 25.2 thousand, based on the results of 2024.
YuzhKoks ended 2022 with a net loss of UAH 1 billion 206.942 million, compared to a net profit of UAH 1 billion 292.672 million in 2021.
According to the NDU data for the third quarter of 2025, Dashuria Ltd. (Cyprus) owns 94.9565% of the company’s shares.
The authorized capital of PJSC Yuzhkoks is UAH 171.918 million, and the nominal value of a share is UAH 0.25.
Insurance company “Unica” (Kiev), in October this year paid out UAH 187.2 mln of insurance indemnities, which is 5.3% less than in October last year (UAH 197.7 mln). According to the company’s website, the total amount of insurance payments under auto insurance contracts amounted to UAH 73.6 mln (-0.8%), of which UAH 51.83 mln under CASCO (-7.3%) and UAH 21.41 mln under CMTPL (+17%).
The total amount of payments under contracts of voluntary medical insurance amounted to UAH 80,47 mln, which is almost the same as last year’s similar indicator, payments under property insurance – UAH 6,23 mln, other types of insurance (including life insurance) – UAH 26,91 mln.
UNIQA Group (Austria) entered the Ukrainian market in 2006. Its companies in Ukraine “Unica” and “Unica Life” with central offices offer most types of risk and life insurance.
Citizens of Ukraine and Russia are among the top ten foreign buyers of housing in Bulgaria in 2024–2025, according to a study by the Experts Club analytical center and data from the Bulgarian Real Estate Association.
According to the study, the top 10 countries whose citizens are most active in buying real estate in Bulgaria are: Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Israel, Romania, Turkey, Italy, Russia, Ukraine, and Poland.
Foreigners account for a significant share of transactions in the housing market. According to one international analytical resource, the number of foreign buyers of residential real estate in Bulgaria in 2024-2025 has increased by approximately 18%, and the overall market is showing steady price growth. According to local experts, the percentage of foreigners in some coastal projects may reach 30% of the total number of buyers.
Foreign buyers are most interested in properties on the Black Sea coast – in Varna, Burgas, and Nessebar – as well as in the mountain resorts of Bansko and Pamporovo, where real estate is considered both for personal use and as an investment for rental.
Analysts note that Ukrainians have firmly established themselves in the top 10 due to a combination of relocation and investment demand: some buyers view Bulgaria as a safe EU jurisdiction during the war, while others see it as an opportunity to earn income from renting out property in tourist regions.
The growth in foreign demand is supporting price increases: over the past year, the cost of housing in Bulgarian seaside resorts has risen by an average of 8-10%, and in Sofia by 7-10%.
At the same time, according to estimates by the European Commission and a number of analytical reviews, housing in Bulgaria in 2025 is overvalued by approximately 10-15% relative to fundamental indicators, but experts are not yet talking about a critical “bubble” in the market.
In the next 2–3 years, Experts Club analysts expect foreigners to keep showing interest in Bulgarian real estate, but with a change in the demand structure: they estimate that the share of buyers from the EU, Ukraine, and Israel will grow, while the role of Russian buyers in new deals may continue to decline amid sanctions and capital movement restrictions.
According to data from the National Statistical Institute of Bulgaria and international reviews, in the second half of 2024, housing prices in the country rose by 15% year-on-year and by 87% compared to 2015. At the same time, the average price per square meter in the country remains significantly lower than in most EU countries, making Bulgaria one of the most affordable real estate markets in the Union for foreign investors.
Russian citizens traditionally account for a significant share of owners, especially on the coast. According to Bulgarian sources, in the Burgas region alone, more than 5,200 properties owned by Russians are officially registered, while across the country as a whole, there are several tens of thousands of properties. At the same time, in recent years, the share of new purchases by Russians has been declining, and some of the properties are being put on the market and bought by Bulgarian and Western European buyers.
Source: https://expertsclub.eu/rynok-zhytla-bolgariyi-analiz-vid-experts-club/
