Due to the rapid spread of coronavirus in the capital, strict quarantine restrictions are being introduced in the city from November 1, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said during a briefing on Thursday.
According to him, at the moment the capital, according to a number of criteria, has already reached the indicators of the “red” zone, in connection with which the city authorities will turn to the government with a request to strengthen quarantine restrictions.
“The decision to refer a city or region to the ‘red’ zone is made by the State Commission for Emergency Situations. And we appeal to the government to make such a decision. But I want to state that the capital, within its powers, introduces strict restrictions, which we announced earlier,” said Klitschko.
According to him, from November 1, all capital catering establishments, shopping and entertainment centers, hotels, gyms and social institutions can be visited only with a negative PCR test or a certificate of vaccination.
In addition, all schools in the city will switch to distance learning from Monday, kindergartens will be able to work only if 100% of the staff are vaccinated. In this mode, educational institutions will work until the epidemiological situation in Kyiv improves.
Public transport will not be stopped, but only people who have a vaccination certificate or a negative PCR test for coronavirus will be able to use it. Law enforcement officers will carry out spot checks on vehicles.
“We are introducing these severe restrictions because there are no other options in order to save the life and health of people,” the mayor stressed.
Ferroalloy enterprises of Ukraine in January-September of this year increased their output by 12.5% in total compared to the same period last year, to 668,270 tonnes, including 80,650 tonnes produced in September.
As the Ukrainian Association of Producers of Ferroalloys and Other Electrometallurgical Products told Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday, in January-September 2021, production of silicon manganese at Zaporizhia (ZFP) and Nikopol (NFP) Ferroalloy Plants increased by 16.6%, to 522,540 tonnes. At the same time, total production of ferromanganese at three plants decreased by 20.7%, to 78,270 tonnes: ZFP, NFP and Kramatorsk Ferroalloy Plant (Kramatorsk plant was idle in January-September 2021, while in the same period of 2020 it produced 34,090 tonnes).
In addition, in Ukraine, production of ferrosilicon (in terms of 45%) increased by 38.3%, to 62,060 tonnes, and metallic manganese – 2.44 times, to 5,400 tonnes.
Pokrov (previously Ordzhonikidze) and Marhanets Mining and Processing Plants (both located in Dnipropetrovsk region) which extract and concentrate manganese ore, in January-September 2021 produced a total of 1.274 million tonnes of manganese concentrate, which 6.6% lower compared to January-September 2020. At the same time, Marhanets Mining produced 418,290 tonnes of concentrate (a decrease by 0.5% compared to the same period in 2020), and Pokrov Mining – 855,870 tonnes (less by 9.3%).
In January-September 2021, Pokrov Mining and Processing Plant also produced 195,040 tonnes of iron ore sinter (up by 63.6% compared to the same period in 2020), supplying it to Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant (DMZ), part of DCH Steel from DCH Group of businessman Oleksandr Yaroslavsky.
GRAWE Ukraine insurer (Kyiv) in January-September 2021 collected UAH 92.503 million in net premiums, which is 18.4% more than in the same period last year, according to the company’s report posted in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission.
It is also noted that the company’s gross premiums for the reporting period increased by 24.5%, to UAH 104.247 million. Some UAH 6.031 million was transferred to reinsurance (more by 5.6%).
For the nine months, the company paid out UAH 56.727 million, which is 18.5% more than in January-September 2020.
Administrative expenses of the company amounted to UAH 11.363 million (less by 5.7%), sales expenses – UAH 37.271 million (more by 12.7%).
Pretax financial result was a loss of UAH 10.037 million against a negative financial result of UAH 4.539 million for the nine months a year earlier. Net loss was UAH 13.164 million against its indicator of UAH 7.050 million in January-September last year.
INPRO insurance company became a member of the Austrian financial concern GRAWE (Grazer Wechselseitige Versicherung AG) on April 10, 2008 and was renamed PrJSC Insurance Company GRAWE Ukraine. The regional network of the company includes about 23 customer service centers throughout Ukraine.
Kyiv authorities will not close public transport in connection with the tightening of quarantine restrictions in the capital, however, passengers will need to provide a certificate of vaccination against coronavirus or a negative PCR test, mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko has said.
“We are not going to close public transport, it will work, but only passengers who have a vaccination certificate or a negative PCR test must travel in it. Documents will be checked not at the entrance to the transport, but by special groups of law enforcement officers on a selective basis,” Klitschko said at a briefing on Thursday.
The mayor stressed that the measures are being introduced because “there are no other options” to save lives and health of people and prevent the collapse of the medical system, which may not withstand a large number of patients.
Sberbank in the third quarter classified the assets of its subsidiary bank in Ukraine as blocked owing to legislative restrictions that do not allow full disposal of these assets, Sberbank said in a statement.
According to Sberbank’s Q3 2021 International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) statement, the Russian credit institution is prohibited from transferring funds and other assets of the Ukrainian subsidiary to other companies of the group. Consequently, Sberbank has created reserves for these assets totaling 33.3 billion rubles.
The Supreme Court of Ukraine in August 2021 ruled in favor of Oschadbank, thereby banning the Ukrainian subsidiary of Russia’s largest bank from using the Sberbank trademark in Ukraine.
“We are now considering various options. Perhaps before the New Year, we will come up with a decision; however, unfortunately for now, this is a sore subject for us. Thus far there is no obvious decision,” Sberbank CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board Herman Gref said in September when commenting on the situation.
Gref noted the high uncertainty regarding the fate of the Ukrainian subsidiary.
“We have a court decision regarding the non-use of our brand, and now we are engaged in the renaming of our Ukrainian subsidiary, though new sanctions have come into force there as of July 1, thereby formally rendering the sale process extremely difficult for us, adding of course to the uncertainty of the fate of our Ukrainian assets,” Gref said.
Ukrainian Sberbank, previously NRB bank, was founded in 2001. Russian Sberbank is its sole owner.
For the oxygen needs of patients with COVID-19, some 35 oxygen producers have been involved, including 23 medical and 12 technical oxygen producers, Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko has said.
“Today, not a single patient, not a single hospital in the country is left without oxygen. Yes, in certain hospitals and regions there is increased demand for oxygen, but it is controlled and issues are resolved promptly and in a team,” he said at a briefing on Thursday.
Liashko said that Ukraine is currently at its maximum values in terms of the daily number of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Thus, 47,380 patients with a diagnosis of COVID-19 were hospitalized.
Currently, 480 hospitals provide medical care to patients with COVID-19, they have more than 70,000 beds for patients with COVID-19, of which more than 66,000 are with oxygen. Patients with COVID-19 or with suspected disease occupy 67% beds.
At the same time, Liashko noted that the actual occupancy of beds with oxygen by patients in need of oxygen therapy is 50%. “The situation is uneven, and 46 out of 480 hospitals [about 10%] have oxygen beds already 100% occupied, and 193 [about 40% of hospitals] have the oxygen bed occupancy at 75%. The remaining 60% of clinics are without critical load,” he said.
