The European Commission (EC) has rejected price commitments proposed by Metinvest Group and other hot-rolled steel exporters from Ukraine, Russia, Iran and Brazil in exchange for non-applying the previously introduced anti-dumping duties to them. According to the EC decision dated March 8, published in the Official Journal of the EU on March 9 of this year, the verdict came into force the day after the publication in the official bulletin, i.e. on March 10, 2018.
At the same time, it is specified that five exporters from Ukraine, Russia, Iran and Brazil sent their price obligations to the EC in exchange for non-application of anti-dumping duties to them. Since these proposals were made at the end of the investigation, the commission was unable to analyze them in accordance with the established deadline, before making decisions within the investigations, undertaking to exclusively do this later. After making final conclusions on the investigation and publication of restrictive measures, price commitment from one more sixth exporter was sent to the EC.
The European Commission on December 18, 2017 informed the applicants about the intention to reject all the obligations they proposed. The applicants, in turn, gave additional explanations and made amendments to their obligations, and their hearing was also conducted.
European Travel Insurance (ERV, Kyiv) in 2017 posted a net profit of UAH 16.288 million, which is twice as much as a year earlier (UAH 8.058 million), according to materials for the agenda of a general shareholders’ meeting scheduled for April 17. Retained earnings grew by 2.3 times, to UAH 27.831 million. In 2017 the company increased assets by 53.3% compared to 2016, to UAH 138 million. Net worth of the insurer for the year rose by 53.7%, to UAH 41 million.
Total debtor indebtedness increased by 3.5 times, to UAH 18.741 million, cash and cash equivalents by 6.7%, to UAH 73.808 million, current liabilities by 2.1 times, to UAH 26.875 million.
European Travel Insurance was founded in 2006. It occupies one of the leading positions in the market of tourist insurance in Ukraine. The charter capital of the insurer is UAH 9.473 million.
The KIMS dry cleaner’s network will open ten outlets for collecting polyethylene in Kyiv on March 13, KIMS Executive Director Tetiana Kuznetsova has said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine. “We have launched our eco project in Odesa in early November, installing eco boxes at eight sales outlets, and until today we’ve managed to collect 720 kg of polyethylene (the weight of one package is about 1.5 grams). Such a project is being launched in Kyiv. Boxes will be installed at ten points of sales, mainly in the center of the city,” Kuznetsova said.
According to her, the KIMS network signed an official agreement for the further processing of polyethylene with Ecomir.
The founder of the dry cleaner’s network, Oleksandr Kohan, noted that the company plans to develop similar eco projects in other cities, where the network operates, in particular, in Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, and Lutsk. According to him, the project is unprofitable: the price of 1 kg of polyethylene is about UAH 3, and for the four months KIMS received about UAH 2,000 from collection of packages.
Kyiv authorities also plan to introduce measures to reduce the amount of polyethylene used, the deputy head of the industry and entrepreneurship development department of Kyiv City State Administration, Denys Pikalov, said. In particular, the administration plans in the spring of 2018 to abandon the use of plastic bags in the Besarabsky market, and also to start garbage collection at seasonal fairs.
The rate of tax on interest has been increased from 2% to 5%, and taxation of dividends and royalties at a zero rate has been abolished, such major changes to the convention between Ukraine and the Netherlands on avoiding double taxation and preventing tax evasion with respect to tax on income and property have been stipulated in the relevant protocol.
This document was signed by Finance Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Danyliuk and State Secretary for Finance of the Netherlands Menno Snel in the Netherlands on March 12. According to a press release of the Ministry of Finance, the protocol provides for the taxation of dividends at a rate of 5% if the actual owner of the dividends is a company that directly owns at least 20% of the capital of the company, paying dividends, and 15% in all other cases. The tax rate for royalties is set at 5% and 10%. Among the changes is also a significant expansion of the parties’ ability to exchange tax information.
Federal President of the Republic of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen will be in Ukraine on March 13-15 on an official visit at the invitation of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, the Ukrainian presidential website has said.
“On March 13-15, Austrian Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen with a strong delegation of business representatives will pay an official visit at the invitation of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko,” it said. On the agenda of the visit are bilateral talks in a narrow circle and as part of the official delegations, as well as the two presidents’ participation in the opening of a Ukrainian-Austrian business forum. The Austrian president is also scheduled to visit the city of Lviv in the west of Ukraine. On March 14, there will be an official meeting of the two presidents, which will be followed by a media briefing. On the same day, the two presidents will attend the Ukrainian-Austrian business forum in Kyiv.
