Ukraine has been increasing its flax exports for the fourth month in a row amid active demand from exporters. Exports in October amounted to 7.65 thousand tons, which is 26% more than in September this year, according to the information and analytical agency APK-Inform.
Analysts noted that the main buyers of flax are EU countries. In October, 43.1% of supplies were purchased by France, 16.8% by Poland, and 11.4% by Italy.
“The increase in flax exports began in July this year, when the active phase of harvesting this crop began. Thus, flax exports in July were recorded at 1.37 thousand tons, and in August at 3.3 thousand tons,” the experts noted.
A sufficient supply of flax is pushing buyers to lower prices. Thus, the maximum demand prices for flax in Ukrainian ports fell by UAH 800/ton over the month and, as of November 6, usually do not exceed UAH 28,500/ton CPT port, according to APK-Inform.
Silpo Food LLC, part of the Fozzy Group (Kyiv) trade and industrial group, which operates the Silpo grocery supermarket chain in Ukraine, earned UAH 956.591 million in profit in January-September 2025, while in the same period last year, the company incurred a loss of UAH 767 million 071 thousand.
According to a study by YouControl, at the end of the third quarter of 2025, it ranked 6th among the top 10 companies in terms of revenue. Silpo Food’s net sales revenue for the first three quarters of 2025 increased by 13.8% compared to the same period in 2024 and reached UAH 75 billion 872 million 342 thousand.
At the same time, the company’s gross profit for January-September 2025 increased by 23% compared to the same period a year ago, to UAH 24.047 billion, and operating profit increased 1.5 times, to UAH 2 billion 152.7 million.
Silpo Food’s current liabilities as of September increased by 5% to UAH 29.7 billion, while long-term liabilities decreased by 5% to UAH 12.994 billion.
As reported, Silpo Food’s revenue for 2024 increased by 9.8% compared to the previous year, to UAH 93 billion.
Silpo Food LLC was established in early August 2016. According to Opendatabot, the founder of the LLC is PJSC “Closed Non-Diversified Venture Corporate Investment Fund ”Retail Capital” (100%, Kyiv), and the ultimate beneficiary is Volodymyr Kostelman.
As of September 2025, the chain has 310 supermarkets in 62 cities of Ukraine and four Le Silpo delicatessen markets: in Kyiv, Dnipro, Kharkiv, and Odesa.
It is part of the Fozzy Group, a trade and industrial group with more than 826 retail outlets throughout the country. The company develops retail chains of various formats: Silpo supermarkets, Fozzy wholesale hypermarkets, Fora neighborhood stores, Thrash! discount stores, Bila Romashka pharmaceutical supermarkets, and E-ZOO pet stores.
According to Serbian Economist, following a meeting of the National Security Council, the Montenegrin government announced that it was preparing amendments to the Law on Foreigners, which would abolish the requirement to obtain a residence permit on the basis of ownership of a “dormant” or formal company and linking the right to reside to full-time employment with a registered employer or a newly established company with contributions and salaries above the minimum. This is stated in a government announcement.
According to the government, interagency checks on the migration and economic activity of foreigners are being tightened; owners of inactive companies in foreign ownership will have their right to reside terminated.
At the same time, the authorities are preparing to restrict visa-free short-term stays for citizens of countries that are not in line with EU visa policy from 90 to 30 days. The authorities have been instructed to prepare subordinate legislation based on the new criteria.
In Montenegro, it has long been possible to open a company and, on this basis, obtain and extend a residence permit; the authorities say it is necessary to close down “schemes” of fictitious employment and bring the rules into line with European standards. In public discussions, it is noted that the “1 euro company” regime should not apply to foreigners.
The greatest risks are faced by foreigners who have obtained a residence permit through their own companies without real activity or without full-time employees and payment of contributions.
In terms of business structure and residents, company owners from Turkey, Russia, Serbia, and Ukraine are in the lead; they will be the first to feel the requirements for real employment and tax payments.
According to open estimates, Turkish citizens own about 9,800 companies, Russians about 7,200, and Serbs more than 3,200; in total, there are more than 31,000 foreign companies in the country.
The geography and main risk groups are as follows:
1) Turkey – the largest group of company owners; in addition, according to police data, more than 13,000 Turkish citizens have a residence permit or a residence permit + work permit. There is a risk of losing status in the absence of real employment and contributions.
2) Russia – second in terms of the number of companies and one of the largest groups of residents; “paper” companies are at increased risk of having their residence permits revoked.
3) Serbia – a significant group in terms of residence permits and companies; formal structures without employees will also be subject to checks.
4) Ukraine – a noticeable share of company owners; formal companies without turnover and employees are under special scrutiny.
The exact parameters will be determined by amendments to the law and subordinate acts.
Source: https://t.me/relocationrs/1694
During the full-scale invasion, Ukraine commissioned 3 million tons of oilseed processing capacity, with the same amount planned and under construction, so there were underutilized enterprises in the country, said Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture Oleksiy Sobolev in an interview with Forbes Ukraina.
“In September, rapeseed oil exports increased 4.5 times compared to August, turning raw material exports into processed products. The state receives a fiscal effect from duties on soybeans and rapeseed, the proceeds of which are directed to a special fund to support the agricultural sector, in particular the frontline territories, i.e., the main goal of the duty is being achieved,” he commented on the results of the introduction of a 10% export duty on soybeans and rapeseed.
The minister noted that to ensure the proper functioning of this mechanism, the government adopted an experimental resolution stipulating that producer-exporters do not pay duties like the rest. In particular, the resolution specifies the method by which a producer confirms that they have grown a particular crop and are entitled to exemption from duties.
In addition, Ukraine is introducing monitoring through the State Agrarian Register to form a unified system of soybean and rapeseed exporters.
Sobolev added that a mechanism for exchanging information between customs and tax authorities is currently being developed with a view to transitioning to an automatic mode in the future. This will be an IT solution, similar to the electronic VAT administration system (SEA VAT), which will be operational by September 2026.
“After the end of the marketing years, we will be able to evaluate the results. Preliminary data already indicate an increase in the share of domestic processing of rapeseed and soybeans,” the Minister of Economy concluded.
The Sukha Balka mine (Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region), part of Alexander Yaroslavsky’s DCH group, increased its net loss by 39.2% in January-September of this year compared to the same period last year, from UAH 218.898 million to UAH 304.774 million.
According to the interim report, net income for the reporting period increased by 1.5%, to UAH 1 billion 870.388 million from UAH 1 billion 843.096 million.
Undistributed profit at the end of September 2025 amounted to UAH 1 billion 791.218 million.
Production volumes in Q3 2025 amounted to 208.2 thousand tons of commercial ore, in Q2 2025 – 228.3 thousand tons, and in Q1 2025 – 203.2 thousand tons. At the same time, production volumes in Q3 2024 amounted to 217.3 thousand tons of marketable ore, in Q2 2024 – 268.2 thousand tons, and in Q1 2024 – 179.2 thousand tons.
In total, for the first nine months of 2025, commercial iron ore production amounted to 639.7 thousand tons, which is 3.8% less than for the first nine months of 2024 (664.7 thousand tons).
According to the annual report, the mine ended 2024 with a net loss of UAH 333.856 million and net income of UAH 2 billion 320.449 million, while at the end of 2023, it received a net profit of UAH 114.837 million with an income of UAH 2 billion 923.317 million.
In July 2024, the company decided to pay dividends to its shareholders for 2007, 2008, 2012, 2020, and 2022 at a rate of UAH 1.2 per ordinary share, including: UAH 0.089 for 2007; UAH 0.157 for 2008; UAH 0.093 for 2012; UAH 0.287 for 2020; UAH 0.574 for 2022. Also, in 2024, the amount of accrued dividends amounted to UAH 1 billion 4.865 million (UAH 1.2 per share), and the amount of dividends paid/transferred amounted to UAH 541 million 569.772 thousand.
In 2024, commercial iron ore production volumes decreased by 3% compared to 2023, to 917 thousand tons due to a shortage of personnel in connection with the mobilization of miners into the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as due to the unscheduled shutdown of the Yuvileina mine for the repair of the skip hoisting installation in August 2024. At the same time, the Yubileinaya mine produced 766,600 tons (a 15% decrease compared to 2023) and the Frunze mine produced 150,500 tons (a 2.6-fold increase).
Over the past year, about 12 new blocks with a total capacity of about 1,198,100 tons of raw materials were developed.
The average number of employees at Sukha Balka PJSC in 2024 was 1,330, and the average monthly salary in 2024 was $522, which is 7.7% higher than in 2023 (in hryvnia equivalent, the salary level in 2024 increased by 18.2% compared to 2023, with a lower percentage increase in USD due to a 9.8% increase in the exchange rate from an average of 36.58 UAH/USD in 2023 to 40.16 UAH/USD in 2024). The main reason for the growth in the level of wages in 2024 was the indexation of tariffs and salaries of employees from March 1, 2024.
During 2024, self-propelled equipment was introduced for various works and ore mining at the Yuvileina mine. The use of self-propelled equipment in tunneling work also continues, and the fleet of equipment is growing. The use of self-propelled equipment in tunneling, cutting, and mining work has significantly increased the pace of work and improved productivity.
At the Frunze mine, all investment projects were suspended in 2024 due to the military aggression of the Russian Federation and emergency power cuts to consumers, but a large-scale investment project is planned, which will allow the mine to continue operating until 2037 and extract additional volumes of ore. The essence of the project is to use inclined workings to deepen the mine from the existing horizon of 1,135 m to 1,500 m and to apply modern technologies for unmanned loading and delivery of rock mass.
In 2025, it is planned to continue the implementation of projects started in 2021-2022, including the use of self-propelled equipment at both mines of the enterprise. In 2025, it is planned to continue research on the development of technology for the production of products with a minimum content of 65%-70% Fe. Specifically, this involves conducting research on the enrichment of iron ores and magnetite quartzites using dry and wet enrichment technologies.
As reported, PJSC “Sukha Balka” reduced its net profit by 2.7 times compared to 2021, to UAH 487.878 million from UAH 1 billion 326.460 million, according to the results of 2022.
The Sukha Balka mine is one of the leading enterprises in the mining industry in Ukraine. It extracts iron ore using underground methods. It consists of two mines with underground crushing complexes and surface crushing and sorting complexes: the Yuvileina mine (capacity of 2.4 million tons per year) and the Frunze mine (capacity of 1.170 million tons per year). Frunze Mine (capacity 1.170 million tons per year)
The DCH Group acquired the mine from the Evraz Group in May 2017.
According to the NDU for the second quarter of 2024, Yaroslavsky, who is designated as a non-resident of Ukraine (a citizen of Great Britain – IF-U), directly owns 77.41% of the mine’s shares, and Artem Alexandrov, a resident individual, owns 15.2% (at the end of 2024, he owned 19.9999% of the shares).
The authorized capital of Sukha Balka PJSC is UAH 41.869 million, with a share par value of UAH 0.05.
The general meeting of shareholders of Globus Bank (Kyiv) has decided to dismiss the Chairman of the Supervisory Board Dmytro Polkovskyy and elect one of the independent members of the Board – Dilara Mustafayeva. According to the bank’s message in the information disclosure system of the National Commission on Securities and Stock Market (NCSSM), the relevant decision was made at the general meeting of shareholders, held on October 30, in accordance with the application submitted by Polkovskiy.
The decision to change the head of the nabsoyet came into force on November 3.
Polkovsky had been the head of the nabsovet since March 2016 and owns 16.2% of the bank’s authorized capital.
Mustafayeva was elected chairman of the supervisory board for a term from October 31, 2025 to April 30, 2026. She became a member of the board in February 2019. Mustafayeva has been the director of the banking market analysis department of Financial Pulse Public Association since April 2015 and the director of the municipal department of IBI rating agency since February 2020 (part-time).
Globus Bank was registered in 2007, the regional network has 30 branches.
According to the National Bank, as of August 18, 2025, the shareholders of the bank were Elena Silnyagina (50.5%), Dmitry Polkovsky (16.2%), Sergey Mamedov (10.5%), Evgeny Varyagin (9.9%), Bakhtari Hedayatollah (9.89967%), Taras Lesovoy (3%) and Andrey Pinchuk (0.00033%), who own the authorized capital indirectly.
As of September 1, 2025, with total assets of UAH 14.98 billion, the bank ranked 25th among 60 banks in Ukraine.
