The incumbent mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has won re-election and will remain in office for a third term, Sky News reports.
In an election held in early May, Khan, who represents Labor, won 43.7% of the vote, while his Conservative rival Susan Hall won only 32.6%.
This is the first time in history that a London mayor will remain in office for three terms.
In early May, regional elections were held in the UK. According to the incoming data, Labor won a convincing victory. The Conservatives, on the contrary, showed the worst result in such elections for the last 40 years.
European media noted that the regional elections gave an insight into the balance of power in British politics ahead of the general election, which is expected to be held at the end of 2024.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is allocating 60 million dollars to support Ukrainian agriculture, USAID Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman has said, Radio Liberty has reported.
According to Coleman, the aid package is aimed at implementing a new Harvest program to mitigate the impact of Russian aggression on agricultural production in Ukraine.
“The program aims to help Ukrainian agrarians improve production efficiency, make it more resilient and competitive in times of war, and along with that lay the groundwork for long-term sustainable development of the Ukrainian agribusiness sector. Under Harvest, USAID will help create a regulatory and business environment in Ukraine that unlocks the potential for innovation and helps leverage private business resources to help Ukrainian agribusinesses continue to feed their country and many other countries around the world,” USAID said.
Coleman noted that the Ukrainian agricultural sector remains one of the main drivers of the Ukrainian economy – in particular, it contributed more than 60 percent of export revenues in 2023. USAID adds that the Harvest program will be part of the Agriculture Sustainability Initiative in Ukraine (AGRI-Ukraine). Since July 2022, the Agency has invested more than $350 million in it, attracting another more than $370 million from other donors.
World food prices fell 9.6% in April from a year earlier, the FAO (UN food and agriculture organization) said in its monthly report on Friday.
Meanwhile, March’s price index was revised up 0.3 percent, the document noted on its website.
The cereal price index rose 0.3 percent in April from March after three months of declines. World wheat export prices stabilized in April as strong competition among major exporters offset concerns about unfavorable crop conditions in several countries in the European Union, Russia and the United States. Export prices for corn were boosted by strong demand amid growing logistical disruptions from infrastructure damage in Ukraine and production concerns in Brazil ahead of the main harvest.
The vegetable oil price index also rose 0.3% year-on-year in March to a 13-month high. FAO indicated that higher quotations for sunflower and rapeseed oil offset a slight decline in palm and soybean oil prices.
The Meat Price Index increased 1.6 percent in April from the previous month as international poultry, beef and lamb prices rose. World pork prices declined slightly, reflecting sluggish domestic demand in Western Europe and persistently sluggish demand from leading importers, especially China.
The sugar price index declined 4.4% from March and was 14.7% below the April 2023 level. The decline was attributed to an improved global supply outlook, particularly due to higher than previously expected production in India and Thailand, as well as improved weather conditions in Brazil.
The Dairy Price Index declined 0.3% after six months of gains, driven by sluggish spot import demand for skim milk powder and lower global cheese prices due to a stronger U.S. dollar. In contrast, world butter prices rose on the back of robust import demand.
JSC Sumy Plant of Pumping and Power Engineering Nasosenergomash and JSC Research and Design Institute of Nuclear and Power Pumping are to be transferred to the management of NNEGC Energoatom.
As the Agency for Finding, Tracing and Management of Assets Derived from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA) reported on Facebook, a roadmap for the transfer of the seized assets to NNEGC is being developed following consultations with the Ministry of Economy and other authorities.
The transfer of property will take place in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 21 of the ARMA Law (Peculiarities of Asset Management in Exceptional Cases).
As reported, Nasosenergomash shares were seized on June 2, 2022.
The owner and ultimate beneficiary of Nasosenergomash through the controlled H.M.S. Capital Limited is a citizen of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Lukyanenko, the founder and one of the shareholders of the Russian group Gidromashservice, which supplies equipment for various industries, including the military-industrial complex of the Russian Federation.
Global information technology (IT) spending will increase by 8% to $5.06 trillion in 2024, according to research firm Gartner.
The previous forecast, released in January, called for an increase of 6.8% (to about $5 trillion).
At the end of 2023, IT costs rose by 3.8% to $4.7 trillion.
Gartner analysts note that global spending in this area may surpass the $8 trillion mark well before the end of this decade.
Growth in data center spending is expected to accelerate to 10% this year, mainly due to plans to develop generative artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, IT services will be the largest market at nearly $1.52 trillion, the report said.
The average lifespan of cell phones is shrinking and consumers and organizations are buying new devices faster, which will push this market segment to grow in 2024 after it fell by 9% last year, experts believe.
Pharmacy sales in Ukraine in January-March 2024 increased by 14.8% in monetary terms compared to the same period a year earlier to UAH 48.532 billion, while in physical terms they decreased by 3% to 300.373 million packs.
Business Credit told Interfax-Ukraine that according to its research, the weighted average price of pharmacy basket items during this period was UAH 161.57, up 18.39% compared to the first quarter of 2023.
In addition, according to Business Credit, pharmacies sold over UAH 37.944 billion worth of medicines, which is 13.6% more than in the same period in 2023. At the same time, their sales in physical terms decreased by 3.75% to 212.103 million packs.
The weighted average retail price of medicinal products in January-March 2024 amounted to UAH 178.9 per unit, which is 18% higher than a year earlier.
At the same time, in monetary terms, pharmacy sales of disinfectants showed the greatest dynamics in January-March 2024 (an increase of 49.57%), Business Credit said.
The top three leaders in sales dynamics also included dietary supplements, whose sales increased by 26.35% in monetary terms to UAH 5.317 billion and by 2.94% in physical terms to more than 27.136 million packages. The average unit price in this segment amounted to UAH 195.96 per unit, up 22.7% year-on-year.
In addition, medical cosmetics were in the top three. Pharmacy sales in this segment in monetary terms amounted to UAH 1.225 billion, up 26.13% year-on-year, and almost 6.897 million packs were sold (+13.8% in physical terms). The weighted average price in this segment was UAH 177.62 per pack (up 10.8%).
As reported, in 2023, pharmacy sales in Ukraine increased by almost 21.67% in monetary terms compared to 2022, to UAH 174.249 billion, while in physical terms they decreased by 4.76%, to 1.218 billion packs. The weighted average price of pharmacy sales last year amounted to UAH 142.96 per unit, which is 27.75% more than in 2022.
At the same time, sales of medicinal products in pharmacies increased by 19.69% in monetary terms to UAH 136.246 billion, while sales in physical terms decreased by 3% to 858.55 million packs. Their weighted average price increased by 23.5% to UAH 158.69 per unit.
