International business, united by the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, emphasizes the need to urgently cancel export duties on soybeans and rapeseed.
They were introduced on September 4, 2025 in accordance with the Law of Ukraine #4536-IX “On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine and Other Legislative Acts of Ukraine in connection with the Adoption of the Law of Ukraine ”On Integrated Industrial Pollution Prevention and Control“ and in order to improve certain provisions of tax legislation” (Law #4536-IX).
The amendment on the introduction of export duties on soybeans and rapeseed was included in Law No. 4536-IX in violation of the principles of legislative technique, the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the principle of stability of tax legislation. Such changes contradict Ukraine’s European integration course and Article 31 of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, worsen the investment climate, pose risks to the rule of law, and lead to losses for agricultural producers due to falling purchase prices and reduced acreage.
Since September 4, 2025, Ukrainian Black Sea ports have been blocked by ships and port railways by railcars carrying rapeseed and soybeans due to the unresolved procedure and criteria for applying the zero duty rate for agricultural producers. Thus, all exporters, including agricultural producers, cannot export their goods and suffer losses due to fines for demurrage of ships and other vehicles, excessive storage of grain in ports, extended insurance coverage, and failure to fulfill contracts with foreign buyers. Expensive goods are stuck in ports and are at risk from regular shelling of ports, as are the crews of foreign vessels whose customs clearance is blocked. Foreign exchange earnings (up to USD 2 billion) for rapeseed and soybean seeds in 2025 have been effectively disrupted. Currently, at least nine vessels are in such a standstill, and according to preliminary estimates, the estimated losses for the business will be between USD 5 and 10 million per month.
In view of the above and the current critical situation, the American Chamber of Commerce calls on the Government to
AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, DUTIES, RAPESEED, SOYBEANS, UKRAINE
According to the results of a study conducted by Active Group and Experts Club in August 2025, Ukrainians express a predominantly neutral or moderately positive attitude toward Saudi Arabia.
According to the survey, 61.2% of respondents have a neutral attitude toward this country. A positive assessment was given by 24.8% of respondents (3.3% — completely positive, 22.5% — mostly positive). A negative attitude was expressed by 11.0% of Ukrainians (3.4% — completely negative, 9.6% — mostly negative), while 7.0% admitted that they were not familiar enough with the country.
“Saudi Arabia is perceived by Ukrainians as a distant and little-known partner. At the same time, the positive assessment of more than a quarter of respondents indicates interest in cooperation and openness to the development of relations,” commented Active Group Director Oleksandr Pozniy.
Experts Club co-founder Maksym Urakyn emphasized the economic aspect:
“In 2025, trade turnover between Ukraine and Saudi Arabia reached $287.2 million. At the same time, exports from Ukraine amounted to $207.8 million, while imports amounted to only $79.4 million, resulting in a positive balance of $128.4 million. This is one of the most balanced areas for Ukraine, especially in the field of agricultural products,” he said.
The survey was part of a large-scale project by Active Group and Experts Club to study Ukrainians’ attitudes toward countries around the world.
ACTIVE GROUP, EXPERTS CLUB, international relations, Pozniy, SAUDI ARABIA, SOCIOLOGY, TRADE, UKRAINE, УРАКИН
The attitude of Ukrainians towards Romania is predominantly positive, although a significant proportion of respondents are neutral. This is evidenced by the results of an all-Ukrainian survey conducted by Active Group in cooperation with the Experts Club information and analytical center in August 2025.
According to the survey, 46.3% of Ukrainians have a positive attitude towards Romania (33.7% – mostly positive, 12.7% – completely positive). A negative attitude was expressed by 7.0% of respondents (6.0% – mostly negative, 1.0% – completely negative). Another 44.3% of citizens are neutral, and 2.7% admitted that they do not know enough about this country.
“For Ukraine, Romania is not only a neighbor and a member of the EU and NATO, but also an important trading partner. In the first half of 2025, the volume of bilateral trade exceeded $1.49 billion, of which exports from Ukraine amounted to more than $679 million and imports from Romania – almost $820 million. The negative balance of $140 million indicates that economic ties remain active and have the potential for further development,” said Maksym Urakin, founder of Experts Club.
In his turn, Oleksandr Poznyi, co-founder of Active Group, noted that the sociological results demonstrate stability in public perception.
“More than a third of Ukrainians rate Romania positively, and almost half are neutral. This means that the negative segment remains relatively small, and thus Romania is viewed by Ukrainians as a neighbor with whom they can maintain constructive relations,” he added.
The survey is part of a broader study of international sympathies and antipathies of Ukrainians in the current geopolitical environment.
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ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, Posniy, ROMANIA, SOCIOLOGY, TRADE, URAKIN
Vodafone Ukraine (VFU), Ukraine’s second-largest mobile operator, which has repurchased its own Eurobonds worth almost $7 million since the end of May as a result of three offers in connection with the payment of dividends, has announced for the third time an increase in the redemption price in the fourth such tender — to 94% of the nominal value compared to 92% a week earlier, 90% at the end of August, and 85% in the initial offer on August 13.
As noted in the company’s announcement on the Irish Stock Exchange, the maximum repurchase amount remained at $5.12 million, up from $3.945 million the week before last.
The deadline for accepting applications has been extended from September 18 to September 25, and settlements are now scheduled for approximately October 2.
The first two times, Vodafone Ukraine repurchased bonds for an amount equivalent to EUR1 million. The debut repurchase was announced at a price of 99% of par value, the second at 90% of par value. The company did not announce the results of the second buyback on the stock exchange, while the scaling factor for the first buyback was 0.0040355668.
According to the results of the third tender, where the redemption price was reduced to 85% of the nominal value and the offer was limited to $4.67 million, Vodafone Ukraine received applications for $53.395 million and satisfied them in the amount of $5.208 million. The scaling factor was 0.1315451889487317.
Bonds maturing in February 2027 with a coupon rate of 9.625% per annum were issued for $300 million. After the cancellation of the redeemed bonds, the total nominal value of the bonds remaining in circulation is $292.532 million.
The redemption of Eurobonds is related to the fact that on April 24, 2025, VFU announced the payment of dividends to its shareholder in the amount of UAH 660.245 million ($15.9 million at the exchange rate specified in the announcement) for 2024. According to the restrictions of the National Bank, they will be paid in separate monthly dividend payments. Each such monthly dividend is expected to amount to UAH 1 million. The company emphasized that under the terms of the bond issue, in this case, it must offer all bondholders to submit an application for their sale for an amount equal to the amount of dividends paid outside Ukraine. Since then, five monthly dividend payments have been made, each equivalent to approximately EUR 1 million.
As reported, VFU reduced its net profit by 13% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year, to UAH 1.705 billion, while its revenue grew by 15%, to UAH 13.518 billion.
Most Ukrainians express a neutral attitude toward Uzbekistan. This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by Active Group in collaboration with Experts Club in August 2025.
According to the results, 65.2% of respondents said they had a neutral attitude towards the country. 23.8% of Ukrainians have a positive attitude (4.3% — completely positive, 19.5% — mostly positive). A negative attitude was expressed by 11.0% of respondents (3.4% — completely negative, 7.6% — mostly negative), while another 3.0% admitted that they were almost unfamiliar with this country.
“Ukrainians do not yet have a clearly formed opinion about Uzbekistan. This is due to the country’s low level of information presence in the Ukrainian media space. The neutral position of the majority leaves room for the development of both political and economic relations,” explained Active Group Director Oleksandr Pozniy.
Experts Club co-founder Maksym Urakyn emphasized the economic aspect:
“In 2025, trade turnover between Ukraine and Uzbekistan reached $165 million. Ukraine exported goods worth $95.4 million, while imports amounted to $69.6 million, resulting in a positive balance of $25.8 million. This indicates the potential for expanding cooperation, particularly in the agro-industrial sector and mechanical engineering,” he said.
The survey was part of a large-scale study by Active Group and Experts Club on Ukrainians’ attitudes toward different countries around the world.
ACTIVE GROUP, EXPERTS CLUB, international relations, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, TRADE, UKRAINE, URAKIN, UZBEKISTAN
SkyUp Airlines has announced the launch of ticket sales for the 2026 summer season and a significant expansion of its route network from Chisinau, which is becoming one of the key aviation hubs for Ukrainian passengers.
According to the carrier’s press service, the schedule includes new flights to Ireland, Switzerland, Spain, Greece, France, Italy, and Georgia.
Among the destinations are:
Chisinau – Madrid (from April 16, 2026, twice a week);
Chisinau – Malaga (from May 2, up to twice a week);
Chisinau – Tenerife (from May 30, once a week);
Chisinau – Paris (CDG) (from April 12, up to twice a week);
Chisinau – Basel (from May 15, twice a week);
Chisinau – Dublin (from December 18, 2025, up to twice a week);
Chisinau – Corfu, Rhodes, Zakynthos (from the end of May, 1–2 flights a week);
Chisinau – Rimini (from May 30, up to twice a week);
Chisinau – Tbilisi (from November 1, 2025, up to 4 times a week).
SkyUp reminded that since April 2025, it has been operating regular flights from Chisinau to a number of popular cities in France, Portugal, Spain, Cyprus, Greece, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Sweden.
The airline, which has been operating for more than six years, received a Maltese license in 2023, allowing it to operate regular flights within European airspace.
