The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Commission are launching the Ukraine Facility for Infrastructure Reconstruction (Ukraine FIRST) with EUR 30 million in funding to help prepare public investment projects for the reconstruction of infrastructure in Ukraine.
“The new program will cover the preparation of public investment projects in Ukraine, providing technical assistance, including feasibility studies, environmental assessments, cost estimates, and procurement plans,” the EBRD press release said.
It is noted that in addition to initial financing, additional funds are also planned to be provided by EU countries, in particular the Netherlands and Italy.
The program consists of two components. One, managed by the EBRD, will pool donor contributions and provide grants from international financial institutions to support project preparation.
The second, under the leadership of the EIB, will provide expert advisory services: feasibility studies, technical designs, and procurement plans. They will cooperate with the project preparation department of the Ukrainian government.
The pilot project of the program will be a EUR160 million loan to the state-owned Ukrnafta for the development of distributed generation and the installation of 250 MW of capacity.
Another project will be technical support from the EIB in partnership with the World Bank and, possibly, the EBRD, to prepare investments in the reconstruction and modernization of the M-15 Odessa-Remy highway, according to the statement.
The Ukraine FIRST program was presented by partners at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2025 (URC) in Rome. It is part of the Framework for Project Preparation initiative developed by the Ukrainian government and international partners last year.
The US continues to occupy a leading position among buyers of Ukrainian recycled pig iron: in the first half of 2025, the US market accounted for more than 77% of foreign exchange earnings from exports of this product.
According to data from the State Customs Service, Ukraine increased its pig iron exports by 47.5% in volume terms in January–June, to 883,200 tons, compared with 598,900 tons in the same period of 2024. In monetary terms, exports grew by 54.6% to $349.4 million.
The main destinations for exports in the first half of the year were:
The US — 77.36% of export revenue;
Italy — 11.96%;
Turkey — 4.91%.
Earlier, on March 12, 2025, the administration of US President Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Ukrainian metal products, with the exception of cast iron. This allowed Ukrainian exporters to maintain their competitive position in the US market and, as statistics show, increase supplies.
At the end of 2024, Ukraine exported 1.29 million tons of processed cast iron worth $500.3 million, of which 72.6% went to the US. Thus, in 2025, the US not only retained its status as a key trading partner in this segment, but also strengthened its importance for the Ukrainian metallurgical sector.
Traders’ confidence that Trump will not follow through on his threats to impose tariffs pushed the London Stock Exchange index to 8,979 points
The FTSE 100 index, which includes the most valuable companies on the London Stock Exchange, rose to a record high as investors shrugged off concerns about Donald Trump’s trade wars.
On Thursday, the FTSE 100 index approached the 9,000 mark, rising to 8,979 points, exceeding its previous record of 8,908 points.
Shares in London rose amid a global rally as traders became confident that Trump would either reach agreements with US trading partners or again delay or cancel the threat of tariffs.
Mining companies led the FTSE 100 gains, with Anglo American, Glencore and Rio Tinto rose by around 3.8%.
Victoria Skolar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “Commodities are driving the FTSE 100 higher, with copper in positive territory and gold rising on a weaker US dollar.”
The FTSE 100 ended the day at a new record high of 8,975 points, up 108.6 points, or 1.23%, on the day.
The blue-chip index has risen more than 9% in 2025, recovering from sharp losses in early April when markets slumped after Trump announced new tariffs as part of his so-called “freedom day,” then rebounded after he delayed their implementation.
Precious metals producer Fresnillo has been the FTSE 100’s top performer this year, with its shares rising 140% since January 1 amid rising gold and silver prices.
Shares in British defense company Babcock have doubled this year, while arms manufacturer BAE Systems’ shares have risen 63% since the start of the year on expectations of increased defense spending amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
Shares rose this week despite Trump’s announcement of new import tariffs from August 1, which were postponed from July 9.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said investors were in an “euphoric summer mood.”
“Perhaps most notable is the market’s apparent indifference to escalating trade tensions. Trump’s 50% tariff on copper imports and threats against Brazil have elicited a muted response. Many now view such statements as political posturing, which Taco summed up as: Trump always backs down,” he said.
The German DAX index also hit a record high on Thursday. It has risen more than 23% since the start of the year thanks to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s plans to increase government spending to stimulate investment and economic growth.
The FTSE 100 is considered an indicator of optimism about the global economy, as many of the largest companies listed in London are globally oriented.
Suzanne Stritter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The FTSE 100 is full of multinational companies that are sensitive to the outlook for the global economy. With so-called ‘Taco trade’ in full swing, it is benefiting from more optimistic sentiment.”
She added: “Investors expect Trump to ‘back down’ and not follow through on his threats.”
The law firm “Barristers” has signed a memorandum of cooperation with the public organizations “Caucasian Union” and the “International Institute for Caucasus Studies” with the aim of providing legal support to representatives of the Caucasian diaspora in Ukraine.
According to the company’s statement, the signing of the document is a response to the challenges faced by people from the Caucasus, who have been fighting against Russian aggression for the past decades. As noted by Yurii Radzievskyi, a partner at “Barristers,” the lawyers specialize in criminal legal defense, particularly in cases involving politically motivated persecution.
“From 2014 to 2022, there were already cases in Ukraine of detentions and extraditions of fighters of Caucasian origin at the request of the Russian Federation. We will not allow such practices to continue,” he emphasized at a press conference at the “Interfax-Ukraine” agency on Thursday.
Another partner at “Barristers,” Oleksii Shevchuk, stated that supporting the peoples of the Caucasus is part of a broader struggle for freedom. “A free Caucasus is an alliance of independence fighters who stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainians in defending the right to be free. We publicly declare our support for this struggle,” he said.
The head of the “Caucasian Union” NGO, Dzhabrail Mirzoev, emphasized the importance of legal assistance, particularly in the context of repression and political persecution. “This team of lawyers will help save the lives of many fighters,” he declared.
In turn, the head of the “International Institute for Caucasus Studies,” Kostiantyn Salii, underlined the role of an independent academic platform that will allow Caucasian researchers to work freely and publish truthful materials. He also noted the importance of protecting scholars and activists from accusations of “extremism” by the Russian Federation: “In Ukraine, one can prove their case relying on lawyers who know how to defend.”
Participants in the initiative believe that the signed memorandum will become an important milestone in the protection of the rights of representatives of the Caucasian peoples under the ongoing Russian aggression.
This amount of revenue is UAH 37.6 billion, or 13.4% more than in the same period of 2024. Among the main budget-forming goods that provided the largest revenues in January-June 2025, the following are in the lead:
– petroleum products – UAH 71.1 billion;
– passenger and freight vehicles – UAH 30.3 billion;
– petroleum gases – UAH 9.3 billion;
– mineral fertilizers – UAH 6.8 billion;
– fungicides, herbicides – UAH 6.0 billion;
– telephone sets – UAH 4.1 billion;
– cigars, cigarillos, and cigarettes – UAH 4.0 billion;
– coal – UAH 3.9 billion.
The main budget-forming goods, whose import growth ensured a significant increase in customs revenues in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year, were:
– petroleum products – by UAH 8.2 billion;
– petroleum gases – by UAH 4.8 billion;
– passenger cars – by 3.7 billion UAH;
– cigars, cigarettes, cigarillos – by 3.2 billion UAH;
– coal – by 2.3 billion UAH;
– agricultural machinery and equipment – by 1.1 billion UAH;
– electricity – by 1.1 billion UAH.
In turn, customs revenues were affected by a steady increase in the share of customs duties assessed on the import of certain goods into Ukraine in accordance with the legally approved list of exemptions. Thus, the total amount of customs duty exemptions on imports of goods in January-June of this year amounted to UAH 140.12 billion, which is 42% or UAH 41.61 billion more than in January-June 2024.
In June 2025, Express Insurance paid out UAH 42.3 million, which is 3.6% less than in the same period last year, according to the insurer’s website. This included UAH 33.8 million paid under comprehensive insurance contracts and UAH 8.5 million under compulsory civil liability insurance (OSAGO).
In June 2025, the company settled 726 insurance claims under CASCO and OSAGO contracts. Of these, 535 claims were for CASCO, and another 191 were for compulsory civil liability insurance.
Incidents under CASCO contracts in June mainly concerned traffic accidents (89%), unlawful actions of third parties (9%), falling objects, as well as fires and explosions caused by military actions (2%).
For example, in the capital, five customers reported damage to their cars as a result of falling debris from missiles and UAVs. The total amount of compensation for these events amounted to UAH 394,000, with an average settlement period of 15 days.
Most insurance events related to traffic accidents occurred in Kyiv and the surrounding region – 289 (61% of traffic accidents) – a decrease of 8% compared to May. The Company’s experts also recorded a decrease in traffic accidents in June in the Lviv (-19 compared to May), Cherkasy (-12), Odessa (-9), and Dnipropetrovsk (-4) regions. However, in the Zakarpattia region, the number of insurance claims for traffic accidents increased by 57% in June, to 11.
As for MTPL insurance, in more than 58% of cases, the victims reported the accident with the police, and another 42% used the Europrotocol procedure. The largest payment in June to victims for property damage under MTPL policies amounted to UAH 170,000 due to a traffic accident in Lutsk, and UAH 109,400 for health damage to victims of a traffic accident in the Sumy region.
Express Insurance was founded in 2008 with the participation of the Ukrainian automotive market leader, UKRAVTO GROUP. The company specializes in auto insurance. The company is represented in more than 60 sales outlets throughout Ukraine and is actively expanding its network of partner service stations. Today, the number of service station partners exceeds 100.
