Industrial production in Ukraine rose by 4.5% in March 2026 compared to the same month in 2025, following a decline of 2.6% in February and 8.1% in January, according to the State Statistics Service (SSS).
According to the statistics agency, industrial production in March 2026 increased by 16.9% compared to the previous month.
Derzhstat notes that overall, industrial production in Ukraine declined by 1.1% in the first quarter of this year.
As reported, industrial production in Ukraine in 2025 decreased by 1.7%, while in 2024 it grew by 4.7%.
The data is presented excluding territories temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation and parts of territories where hostilities are (were) taking place.
Ukraine’s real gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.5% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the first quarter of 2025, following a 3.0% increase in the fourth quarter of last year, 2.1% in the third quarter, 0.7% in the second, and 0.8% in the first, the State Statistics Service reported on Tuesday.
According to its data, compared to the previous quarter, taking into account seasonal factors, real GDP decreased by 0.7%, while a quarter earlier this figure was positive at 0.7%.
As reported, the National Bank lowered its forecast for real GDP growth in 2026 to 1.3% from 1.8% in its January Inflation Report due to the still-dire state of the energy system and the accumulation of negative economic effects from the war in the Middle East. The NBU estimated GDP growth in the first quarter at 0.2%
At the same time, the Ministry of Economy estimated a 0.2% decline in GDP for January-February of this year.
As reported, according to the State Statistics Service, Ukraine’s GDP growth slowed to 1.8% in 2025 from 2.9% in 2024 and 5.5% in 2023, following a 28.8% decline in 2022—the first year of full-scale aggression.
According to Fixygen, the Cayman Islands-registered cryptocurrency exchange Bullish has agreed to acquire the British securities registrar Equiniti from the American private equity firm Siris Capital for $4.2 billion, including $1.85 billion in debt, according to a statement from the buyer.
The transaction will be paid for entirely in stock. It is expected to close in January of next year following regulatory approvals.
Following the deal, Bullish and Equiniti plan to provide corporate issuers with securities tokenization services, including 24/7 trading on the Bullish exchange and other platforms, as well as payment and settlement solutions based on stablecoins.
Equiniti is one of the world’s largest registrars. The company serves approximately 3,000 public companies, including Berkshire Hathaway, Moody’s, and Rolls-Royce.
Bullish was founded in November 2021 and focuses on serving institutional clients, including market makers and asset management firms. Last August, it held a $1.1 billion IPO in New York with a total valuation of $5.41 billion. Bullish also owns the CoinDesk information platform, which, among other things, provides cryptocurrency price data, and has already tokenized its own shares.
Bullish shares are down 3% in pre-market trading on Tuesday.
In 2025, the national postal operator Ukrposhta reduced its net loss by 50% compared to 2024—to 206.55 million UAH, while its revenue grew by 1.1% to UAH 13.11842 billion, which is 13% below the plan, according to the company’s annual report.
According to the report, Ukrposhta’s gross profit for 2025 increased by 8.6% to UAH 1.56 billion, while the loss from operating activities rose by 2.9% to UAH 414.50 million.
The company also reported that last year’s revenue from domestic and international parcels rose by 9% compared to the year before last—to 2.79 billion UAH. The distribution of periodical print media brought Ukrposhta 1% more—UAH 274.4 million—due to a revision of rates.
At the same time, revenue from international postal exchange (imports) fell by 9% to 1.22 billion UAH due to stagnation in the parcel market and the consolidation of orders into a single shipment at a lower rate.
Revenue from the delivery of international “EMS” mail in 2025 also fell by 13%, or UAH 43.7 million, to UAH 287.9 million.
Revenue from the “pensions and financial assistance” sector decreased by 8% to UAH 2.58 billion. Ukrposhta cited the transition of pensioners to banking services as the main factor, a trend that is gradually intensifying, including due to additional government programs that pay social benefits exclusively through bank cards.
Revenue from other financial services decreased by 2% to UAH 47.5 million, driven by a decline in cash withdrawal and payment card top-up services via the company’s terminals.
The report also notes that revenue from written correspondence decreased by 2% to UAH 1.73 billion, although small packages accounted for UAH 1.12 billion, which is 4% higher than the 2024 figures due to the recovery of business activity in the market.
The company emphasized that the main factors contributing to the loss in 2025 were the accelerated outflow of retirees and the corresponding decline in traditional services, failure to meet parcel growth targets, and delays in real estate sales due to late approval from the shareholder. However, the company partially offset these factors by optimizing its payroll and other expenses.
It is noted that Ukrposhta continues to generate operating profit at the EBITDA level: in 2025, it amounted to UAH 503 million, compared to UAH 472 million in 2024.
According to the report, the national operator paid UAH 3.62 billion in taxes, fees, and mandatory payments in 2025, which is UAH 495.7 million more than in 2024; of this amount, UAH 961.7 million was paid to the state budget, an increase of UAH 395.8 million compared to the previous year.
As for Ukrposhta’s capital investments, their volume last year amounted to 1.21 billion UAH.
It is noted that capital investments of 991.6 million UAH, including VAT, are planned for 2026, of which 89.5 million UAH will come from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and 736.7 million UAH from own funds.
It is anticipated that capital investments will be directed toward launching a network of parcel lockers, purchasing technological and sorting equipment for new logistics terminals, logistics centers, and depots, and acquiring IT equipment, including network equipment and computer hardware.
Among other areas, the company plans to invest in the purchase of low-speed electric vehicles (tricycles, electric scooters), upgrading branch formats to ensure their autonomy—specifically, purchasing generators and inverters, disconnecting from shared power grids—as well as expanding the network of cargo branches and implementing the “Pharmacy” project.
In addition, the plan includes the purchase of IT equipment to implement automated processes and the further development of mobile applications for customers and employees, as well as the digitization of processes and other components.
The report notes that as of the end of 2025, no funds had been drawn down under the loan agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB). The company submitted a formal request to the bank to cancel the loan financing, as it had not actually been utilized.
As of the end of last year, EUR 53.11 million had been received under the loan agreement with the EBRD, EUR 18.66 million had been repaid, and the total debt as of December 31 stood at EUR 34.45 million.
As reported, the national operator posted a net loss of UAH 204.8 million for January–March 2026, which is UAH 1.1 million, or 0.5%, higher than in the same period of 2025, but 40% lower than projected in the plan. The company’s revenue in the first quarter decreased by 0.1%, or UAH 5 million, to UAH 3.34 billion, which is 2% below the plan.
According to the Interfax-Ukraine Culture project, Columbia University has announced the winners of the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in the fields of journalism, literature, drama, and music, as reported on the prize’s official website.
“The Pulitzer Prize Board has announced the 2026 winners, recognizing works distinguished by their depth, public significance, and artistic power,” the official statement reads.
In the literary categories this year, a number of authors were recognized whose works cover themes of war, historical memory, and social transformation. In particular, the prize for fiction was awarded to Daniel Kraus for his novel “Angel Down.”
In the ‘History’ category, the award went to Jill Lepore, who explores key processes of America’s past, while Brian Goldstone won in the “Non-Fiction” category for his work addressing current social challenges.
The winner of the prize in the field of poetry was Juliana Spahr, whose work focuses on themes of collective experience and global change.
As the organizers note, this year’s winners demonstrate that literature and journalism “remain key tools for understanding the modern world.”
The Pulitzer Prize is considered one of the most influential awards in the world, and its laureates often set key trends in global culture and media. The announcement of the winners traditionally took place in New York at Columbia University, which has administered the prize since its inception.
The Pulitzer Prize was established in 1917 under the will of publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is awarded annually for outstanding achievements in journalism, literature, drama, and music. It is considered one of the most prestigious awards in the world and a benchmark of quality for the media and cultural sectors.
https://interfax.com.ua/news/culture/1164933.html
The risk of crop damage from night frosts following an early warm spell and a 50% increase in production costs due to rising prices for fuel and plant protection products (PPPs) will be the main challenges for Ukrainian berry growers in the 2026 season, according to an analytical report by the “Berry Growing of Ukraine” association.
“The main challenge of the season is temperature instability and the risk of damage to berry crops during critical stages of development,” the association’s experts noted.
Over 60% of Ukraine’s berry farms are switching to diesel generators to ensure stable operation of irrigation systems.
According to monitoring data from the “Berry Farming of Ukraine” association, the overwintering condition of key crops is mostly stable, though blueberries showed the greatest vulnerability to frost. Thus, the proportion of blueberry plants damaged by frost is 16.30%, while raspberries and strawberries fared much better over the winter—with losses at 2.50% and 1.80%, respectively.
Due to the damage to blueberries, the association forecasts a possible decrease in the gross harvest of this berry, accompanied by an increase in its average size.
The business association also noted a significant increase in production costs. According to the resource price growth index, plant protection products saw the largest price increase—by 1.61 times. Fuel prices rose by 1.48 times, and fertilizer prices by 1.34 times compared to the previous period.
According to the “Berry Farming of Ukraine” association, the issue of energy independence remains a priority for the industry. As of 2026, the structure of power sources for enterprises has diversified significantly: diesel generators account for the largest share of electricity supply—61.20%. Only 26.60% of farms remain fully dependent on the public grid, while 12.20% of producers already use their own solar power plants to minimize the risk of outages.
At the same time, most enterprises are equipped with autonomous sources that cover between 50.00% and 100.00% of their electricity needs for irrigation systems and refrigerators.
