According to a recently published report by Deutsche Bank, the highest increase in rents for three-room apartments in European city centers between 2020 and 2025 was recorded in Southern and Eastern Europe, reaching 206%. These figures are from a study covering 67 cities worldwide, including 28 in Europe.
According to Eurostat, housing prices in the EU rose by 27.3% quarter-on-quarter (from Q1 2020 to Q1 2025), while rents rose by 12.5% between June 2020 and June 2025. However, growth exceeded the average in central city areas.
The most expensive and cheapest cities in 2025:
The highest rental growth (2020–2025):
Overall, the findings show that Southern and Eastern Europe have lost their relative affordability in terms of housing rentals, while the major financial and political centers of Western and Northern Europe remain the most expensive, but affordability in Eastern Europe is declining rapidly.
In January-July of this year, Ukrainian metallurgical companies increased their revenues from exports of ferrous metals by 3.8% compared to the same period last year, to $1 billion 816.128 million.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, ferrous metals accounted for 7.79% of total export revenues during this period, compared to 7.73% in January-July 2024.
In July, export revenues amounted to $277.615 million, compared to $275.767 million in the previous month.
At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 9.1% to $954.486 million in January-July 2025. In July, products worth $144.918 million were imported.
In addition, in January-July 2025, Ukraine increased exports of metal products by 2.6% to $568.849 million. In July, exports amounted to $57.062 million.
Imports of metal products during this period increased by 7.7% to $658.076 million. In July, these products were imported for $137.568 million.
As reported, in 2024, Ukrainian metal companies increased their revenues from exports of ferrous metals by 16.9% compared to the previous year, to $3 billion 96.343 million. At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 13.1% over the past year, to $1 billion 478.814 million.
In 2023, Ukraine reduced its revenues from exports of ferrous metals by 41.6% compared to 2022, to $2 billion 647.72 million, with ferrous metals accounting for 7.3% of total revenues from exports of goods during this period, while in 2022, the share was 10.3%. At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 37% in 2023, to $1 billion 307.05 million.
In addition, in 2023, Ukraine reduced exports of metal products by 16.6% compared to 2022, to $877.92 million. At the same time, imports of metal products increased by 40.3%, to $902.57 million.
In July 2025, 1,247 people with tuberculosis (TB) were registered in Ukraine, including 945 new cases and 238 patients with relapse.
As reported by the Center for Public Health (CPH), at the end of July, 233 people out of the total number had drug-resistant form of TB, 215 patients had HIV-positive status.
At the same time, according to the CDC in July 2025, 967 people were cured of tuberculosis.
The pet products market in Ukraine grew by 20% in 2024, reaching UAH 45.4 billion, and according to optimistic forecasts, it will grow by another 20% in 2025, said Anastasia Rudavka, head of the communications and corporate social business development department at Suziria Group.
“The global pet products market is growing rapidly and approaching $84 billion. The domestic market, even despite the full-scale invasion, is showing annual growth. Last year, volumes grew by 20% to UAH 45.4 billion. This year, according to an optimistic scenario, growth will be 20-21%, and according to a pessimistic scenario, about 13-15%,“ she said during the presentation of the joint project ”Humane Education. Volunteering” by the UAnimals Charitable Foundation and Suziria Group on Wednesday.
According to Euromonitor 2025, there are 17.7 million pets in Ukraine, 66.5% of which are cats and dogs.
Rudavka emphasized the general trend toward a more conscious attitude toward pets. In particular, in 2024, the culture of responsible nutrition grew. The number of animals fed ready-made food increased by 14%; more than half of owners are willing to pay for eco-friendly products and food with alternative proteins, etc.
“We are also seeing a global trend toward humanization. Last year, MasterZoo sold 60,700 items of clothing for pets, 3,223 pairs of shoes and socks, and almost 2,000 perfumes. In the two weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day, we sold a thousand gift boxes. Another trend is minimizing stress for animals, which also speaks to the development of a culture of caring for pets. For example, mobile grooming and veterinary home visits, as well as taxis for animals, are appearing,” Rudavka noted.
Suziria Group is a Ukrainian family-owned group of companies that has been developing the pet products market for over 30 years. It includes Suziria Brands, Suziria Distribution, the MasterZoo pet store chain with 190 stores, and a chain of grooming salons. The company operates throughout Ukraine and abroad, exporting its own products under the Savory, Half&Half, Special One, Pet Fashion, Buddy Boo, Priroda, and Puramur brands.
In January-July 2025, Ukrainian enterprises increased exports of ferrous metal scrap by 66.4% compared to the same period last year, to 248,342 thousand tons from 149,229 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, 44,842 thousand tons were exported in July, a record 47,691 thousand tons in June, 28.6 thousand tons in May, in April – 46,321 thousand tons, in March – 39,908 thousand tons, in February – 25,284 thousand tons, and in January – 15,696 thousand tons of scrap metal.
In monetary terms, scrap exports in January-July increased by 57.9% to $75.468 million from $47.801 million.
During this period, scrap exports were formally carried out mainly to Poland (82.17% of shipments in monetary terms), Greece (6.13%), and Italy (4.28%).
In the first seven months of the year, Ukraine imported 34 tons of scrap worth $12,000 from Poland (58.33%), the Seychelles (33.33%), and the British Virgin Islands (8.33%).
As reported, due to the sharp increase in exports of strategic raw materials from Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy initiated the introduction of a licensing and quota regime for scrap exports with a zero quota. A public discussion of the draft resolution is currently underway. Its implementation is expected to contribute to the smooth operation of Ukraine’s metallurgical and foundry industries, as well as to stabilize the situation with the supply of scrap on the domestic market of Ukraine.
In 2024, Ukraine’s scrap metal collection companies increased their exports of ferrous scrap by 60.7% compared to 2023, to 293,190 thousand tons from 182,465 thousand tons. In monetary terms, scrap exports for the year increased by 73.2% to $91.311 million from $52.723 million.
US president also suggests he would push for second summit if his meeting with Putin goes well alongside Vlodymyr Zelenskyy
Vladimir Putin will face “very severe consequences” if he does not agree a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine at his summit with Donald Trump in Alaska, the US president said on Wednesday.
Speaking after a call with Vlodymyr Zelesnkyy and other European leaders, including Britain’s Keir Starmer, Trump also suggested he would push for a second summit if his meeting with Putin goes well – this time including his Ukrainian counterpart.
“If the first one goes okay, we’ll have a quick second one,” Trump told reporters in Washington. “I would like to do it almost immediately, and we’ll have a quick second meeting between President Putin and President Zelenskiy and myself, if they’d like to have me there.”
Trump did not provide a timeframe for a second meeting. He is to meet Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday.
Asked if Russia would face consequences if Putin did not agree to stop the war after the Alaska meeting, Trump said: “Yes, they will … very severe consequences.”
The president’s remarks came after he had what he described as a very good call with European leaders in which he consulted about the goal and strategy for his summit. He pleased Europe’s leadership by giving reassurances that a ceasefire was his priority and he would not make any territorial concessions without Kyiv’s full involvement.
Trump’s approach at the video conference, as described by France’s Emmanuel Macron, appeared to reassure some of the leaders, who were making a final collective plea to the unpredictable US president that he had a duty to protect Ukraine’s sovereignty – and European security – at the talks in Alaska.
The European leaders spoke with Trump and his vice-president, JD Vance, in a hastily convened one-hour meeting in an effort to shape Trump’s negotiating strategy. Zelenskyy and European leaders have been excluded from the Alaska summit and fear that Trump, intent on fulfilling his election campaign guarantee that he could easily end the bloodshed in Ukraine, will make concessions that compromise Ukraine’s future sovereignty.
But Trump underlined his promise that the summit was not in itself a substantive negotiation but what he described as a “feel-out” to test Putin’s terms to sign a temporary ceasefire that would then lead to talks with the Ukrainians. Trump said it had been a very good call, adding he rated it at a 10 out of 10.
The European intervention involved a group of European leaders and Zelenskyy discussing the US negotiating strategy with Trump and Vance.
Afterwards the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, stressed that Europe wanted Trump to be successful in Alaska but that it had made clear to the US president that Ukrainian and European interests had to be protected at the summit.
Merz speaking with Zelenskyy by his side at a press conference in Berlin said the right chronology was a 30-day ceasefire, and then substantive talks. Putin has resisted a ceasefire for months.
Setting out the key principles on which Europe is united he said: “The principle that borders cannot be changed by force must continue to apply.
“Negotiations must include robust security guarantees for Kyiv. The Ukrainian armed forces must be able and remain able to effectively defend the sovereignty of their country. They must also be able to count on western aid in the long term.
“Negotiations must be part of a common transatlantic strategy. Then they can ultimately be most likely to succeed. This strategy must continue to rely on strong support for Ukraine and necessary pressure against Russia. This also means, if there is no movement on the Russian side in Alaska, then the United States and we Europeans should … increase the pressure.”
He added there cannot be any Russian legal ownership of Ukrainian territory.
“President Trump knows this position, he shares it very extensively and therefore I can say: We have had a really exceptionally constructive and good conversation with each other.”
Macron said no serious discussions had taken place about Russian-Ukrainian land swaps involving the ceding of Ukrainian territory, and Trump had anyway underlined that any such discussions could only be negotiated with Kyiv. He said Trump would fight for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the US and Russia and that such a meeting would be held in Europe.
The Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, said the ball was now in Russia’s court on whether it wanted a ceasefire, and he said the transatlantic alliance was united.
One European diplomat said: “Overall the meeting was reassuring in that our points came across, but the question remains whether Trump will stick to the agreed script when he gets into the room with Putin.”
Trump met heads of state and government leaders from Germany, the UK, France, Italy, Poland and Finland, as well as the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. Later, the European leaders were due to report back to the so-called coalition of the willing, the group of western countries that have in principle signed up to provide practical military guarantees to protect Ukrainian sovereignty in the event of a peace settlement. The guarantees issue was raised in the call with Trump, but no breakthrough was made in the US offering to provide practical support to the coalition.
But the Europeans’ main objective had been to seek reassurances from the notoriously fickle Trump that he would not be lured into making irretrievable pledges requiring Ukraine to make concessions of land as the price for securing Putin’s agreement to a ceasefire. They also tried to extract bankable guarantees that Trump was still prepared to deploy as yet unused economic levers that could damage Russian revenues and play into Putin’s assessment of his bargaining strength.
With news of significant Russian military advances emerging from the battlefield, Zelenskyy travelled to Berlin to be at the side of Merz during the meeting – both a show of solidarity and a means of reducing the risk of a row between Zelenskyy and Trump.
European leaders have been careful in public to welcome Trump’s summit but in private fear Trump is bent on improving US-Russia relations and sees a loss of Ukrainian sovereignty as a necessary and unavoidable price to secure that objective.
In advance of the meeting, Trump complimented the European leaders as “great people who wanted to get a deal done”, but he has been vague about his strategy, including the terms he will offer to induce Putin to agree to a ceasefire, which is Ukraine’s precondition for talks. Vance, better briefed than his president, thinks Europe has to show greater leadership by admitting that painful concessions are necessary to end a war Ukraine does not have the troops to win.
Zelenskyy revealed that the overall personnel ratio between Ukraine and Russia stood at one to three in favour of Russia, while in artillery the ratio is one to 2.4.
The issues at play are territorial concessions, military guarantees to ensure Russia does not restart the fighting, and Ukraine’s future relationship with western institutions including Nato.
Zelenskyy has vowed that the Ukrainian military will not voluntarily surrender territory in Donetsk and Luhansk, but Russia is insisting at least four Ukrainian regions will become Russian either at the negotiating table or through force.
Trump vented his fury at media reporting of his meeting with Putin, writing on Truth Social: “The media is being really, really unfair about my meeting with Putin. They keep quoting fired losers and really stupid people like John Bolton, who just said that even though the meeting is on US soil, ‘Putin has already won’. What the hell is this? We win EVERYTHING.”
The treasury secretary, Scott Bessant, said further sanctions or secondary tariffs could yet be placed on Russia’s trading partners if the Alaska meeting did not go well.
A confident Moscow dismissed the importance of Europe’s consultation with Trump. The foreign ministry spokesperson Alexei Fadeyev said: “We consider the consultations requested by the Europeans to be politically and practically insignificant actions. Verbally, the Europeans support the diplomatic efforts of Washington and Moscow to resolve the Ukrainian crisis, but in reality the European Union is sabotaging them.”
Russia says the Alaska meeting is likely to address the full gamut of Russian-American bilateral relations, and not just Ukraine. “We hope that this meeting will allow the leaders to focus on the full range of issues, from the crisis in Ukraine to the obstacles that hinder normal and constructive dialogue, which is crucial to ensuring international peace and stability,” the spokesperson said.
The veteran Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, will be present at the Alaska talks.
Before the meeting, the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, tried to pour salt into Europe’s wounds by saying Russia had won the war. “We talk as if the situation is a war without end but it is not. The Ukrainians have lost the war. Russia has won this war,” he said.
Orbán said the only question was “when and under what circumstances the west, which supports the Ukrainians, will admit that this happened and what the consequences will be”.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/13/trump-assurances-europe-putin-ukraine-alaska-talks
