Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

Copper imports to Ukraine fell by 11.6% in two months to $26.8 mln

In January-February of this year, Ukrainian enterprises reduced imports of copper and copper products in monetary terms by 11.6% compared to the same period last year, to $26.757 million.

According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine on Tuesday, exports of copper and copper products during the specified period decreased by 14.6% to $12.213 million.

In February, copper imports amounted to $15.724 million, while exports amounted to $7.260 million.

As reported, in 2025, Ukrainian enterprises increased imports of copper and copper products in monetary terms by 23.2% compared to the previous year, to $173.453 million, while exports of copper and copper products grew by 17.7%, to $103.848 million.

Copper is widely used in electrical engineering, in the production of pipes, for creating alloys, in medicine, and in other industries.

Earlier, the Experts Club information and analytical center released a video dedicated to global copper production and leading producing countries – https://youtube.com/shorts/_h8iU50z8C0?si=a-XkgGEfeUxseQNa

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Court has dismissed charges against Yuriy Bolokhovets, CEO of State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine”

The Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) has dismissed the charges against Yuriy Bolokhovets, CEO of the State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine,” according to a statement by lawyer Volodymyr Volodymyrov on Facebook.

According to a statement by the Advanq Law Firm (ADVANQ), which provided legal representation, the court’s decision is final and cannot be appealed. According to the lawyer, the court found the charges against the head of the state-owned enterprise to be unfounded.

“Even before the case was transferred to NABU, the investigation had done a tremendous amount of work, gathering a large amount of material, but was unable to find evidence of land seizure, receipt and legalization of illegal funds, or abuse of official authority. Four of the five charges were not confirmed at the investigation stage, and in court we managed to prove the groundlessness of the last one,” Volodymyr said.

He emphasized that the reason for the persecution of Bolokhovets was the forest reform, as a result of which “the old system was destroyed, and billions in revenues from the sale of state timber began to be paid into the budget.”

The lawyer recalled that last year Bolokhovets was held in custody for two months with an “unrealistic bail amount” imposed, and his family, colleagues, and defenders were also subjected to pressure and information attacks. At the same time, he expressed his respect for the anti-corruption authorities for their objective analysis of the materials despite external pressure.

The press service of the State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine” emphasized that the pressure on the CEO was due to his position on the introduction of transparent market mechanisms for the sale of timber and the de-shadowing of the forestry industry.

As reported, Yuriy Bolokhovets was notified of the suspicion in July 2025. During the investigation, he was held in custody with the possibility of bail.

State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine” is one of the largest forest users in Europe and is under the management of the State Agency of Forest Resources of Ukraine. The enterprise manages 6.6 million hectares of state forest fund land.

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In January-February, Ukraine imported 123,000 tons of coke, mainly from Poland

In January-February of this year, Ukraine reduced imports of coke and semi-coke in physical terms by 21% compared to the same period last year, to 123,104 tons.

According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, 54,408 tons of coke were imported in February.

Coke imports in monetary terms fell by 14.1% in January-February 2026, to $42.747 million. Coke was imported from Poland (98.37% of supplies in monetary terms), the Czech Republic (1.15%), and Colombia (0.44%).

The country did not export coke in the first two months of the year.

As reported, in 2025, Ukraine increased its imports of coke and semi-coke in physical terms by 5.9% compared to the previous year, to 700,650 thousand tons, and increased its revenue by 1.4%, to $238.656 million. Coke was mainly imported from Poland (93.37% of supplies in monetary terms), Indonesia (4.01%), and the Czech Republic (2.59%).

In 2025, Ukraine exported 3 tons of coke worth $2,000 to Albania.

In addition, it was reported that Metinvest suspended the operation of the Pokrovsk Coal Group in January 2025 due to changes in the situation on the front line, electricity shortages, and the deterioration of the security situation.

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Tekom Agro Group has started spring sowing of red lentils in Odesa region

The Tekom Agro Group agricultural association (Odesa region) has started its 2026 spring sowing campaign with the sowing of red lentils, according to a post on its Facebook page on Tuesday.

It is noted that the first to start work were two farms of the association: Chornomorets LLC and Pivdenna Agricultural Company. In total, more than 1,000 hectares have been allocated for red lentils in four farms of the group.

“The temperature of +15°C allows us to start this year’s spring sowing. There is still enough moisture in the soil. In the Odessa region, in particular, where Chornomorets LLC operates, we are sowing lentils for the first time, and about 300 hectares are planned for this crop,” said Sergey Shtyrbulov, deputy head of production at Tekom Agro Group, whose words are quoted in the report.

According to the company, the Canadian variety Maxim (predecessor — winter wheat) was selected for sowing. The work is being carried out using John Deere sowing complexes with simultaneous fertilizer application.

Tekom Agro Group is a management company of an agricultural association in the Odesa region that operates according to a vertically integrated model. The holding’s land bank is over 26,000 hectares, on which the agricultural companies Yasni Zori, Pivdenna, Chornomorets, and Lyman operate. It specializes in growing winter wheat, barley, and rapeseed, as well as sunflowers and lentils.

The storage infrastructure consists of two elevators in the Podilskyi district — Podilskyi Grain Processing Enterprise and Chubivskyi Bread Products Plant — with a total one-time storage capacity of 100,000 tons. The enterprises are equipped with grain dryers and have their own certified laboratories. Chubivsky KHP has a seed line that provides the group’s farms with planting material.

According to YouControl, the founders of Tekom Agro Group are Yuriy Rodin and Mark Becker.

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Exports of metal products from Ukraine fell by 25.8%, imports rose by 13.5%

In January-February of this year, Ukrainian metallurgical companies reduced their revenues from ferrous metal exports by 1% compared to the same period last year, from $419.20 million to $415.10 million.

According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, ferrous metals accounted for 6.42% of total export revenues during this period, compared to 6.67% in January-February 2025.

In February 2026, export revenues amounted to $210.24 million, compared to $205.08 million in the previous month.

At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 6.6% in January-February 2026, to $243.31 million, including $120.59 million worth of products imported in February.

In addition, in January-February 2026, Ukraine reduced exports of metal products by 25.8% to $107.37 million, with $58.79 million exported in February.

Imports of metal products during this period increased by 13.5% to $156.61 million, of which $79.88 million was imported in February.

As reported, Ukrainian metal companies increased their revenues from ferrous metal exports by 7.85% in 2025 compared to the previous year, to $3 billion 339.49 million. Ferrous metals accounted for 8.25% of total export revenues for the year, compared to 7.42% in 2024. At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 12.9% in 2025, to $1 billion 669.54 million. In addition, last year Ukraine reduced exports of metal products by 3%, to $916.15 million. Imports of metal products increased by 24.4% over the year, to $1 billion 290.61 million.

In 2024, metal companies increased their revenues from ferrous metal exports by 16.9% compared to the previous year, to $3 billion 96.34 million. At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 13.1%, to $1 billion 478.81 million.

In 2023, Ukraine reduced its revenues from ferrous metal exports by 41.6% compared to 2022, to $2 billion 647.72 million, with ferrous metals accounting for 7.3% of total revenues from goods exports, while in 2022 the share was 10.3%. At the same time, Ukraine increased imports of similar products by 37% in 2023, to $1 billion 307.05 million. In addition, in the same year, Ukraine reduced exports of metal products by 16.6% compared to the previous year, to $877.92 million. At the same time, imports of metal products increased by 40.3%, to $902.57 million.

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Export changes in % to previous period in 2024-2025

Export changes in % to previous period in 2024-2025

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