At a scheduled meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) once again decided to keep the key policy rate at 10%, given the ongoing war in the country unleashed by Russia.
“Under the current conditions, the impact of the key policy rate on the functioning of the money market and the FX market remains limited. With this in mind, the key policy rate will stay flat at 10% until monetary transmission channels are effective again,” the NBU said on its website on Thursday.
As reported, in early March, the National Bank, in the face of Russia’s large-scale armed aggression, kept the refinancing rate at 10% per annum, postponing the decision to revise it until the economic situation normalizes.
Demand for eggs quadrupled in March in the LotOK convenience store chain, demand for pet products tripled, for groceries doubled, and for tobacco products and drinks and non-alcoholic beverages almost doubled. Demand for confectionery grew 1.5 times, but demand for vegetables and bakery products remained at the same level.
Such data was given in a commentary to Interfax-Ukraine by marketing director of the LotOK store chain Olha Momchylovych.
At the same time, she said that the demand structure of large supermarkets and convenience stores is significantly different.
“If in peacetime for small stores located in residential buildings and residential complexes, the top categories of demand are tobacco products, soft drinks, confectionery, dairy products and groceries, then in the first days of the war, groceries took the top position in demand, and eggs joined the top categories,” Momchylovych said.
At the same time, demand for dairy products temporarily decreased in March, which, the expert emphasized, was the result of a disruption in supply chains.
“In April, we see almost the full recovery of milk sales,” Momchylovych said.
At the same time, she predicts, April results in terms of the structure of demand will differ from March due to the lifting of restrictions on the sale of alcohol and alcoholic beverages, as well as the resumption of operation of a number of enterprises.
“During the first ten days of April, the demand for alcohol increased almost 2.5 times, the level of demand for eggs is still at the level of March, and the demand for groceries has returned to pre-war levels,” she said.
Lithuania is ready to help Ukraine export unsold volumes of grain from last year’s harvest, Lithuanian Minister of Communications and Transport Marius Skuodis told reporters.
According to him, grain can be transported through Poland to the port of Klaipeda. Companies have already submitted proposals.
“We have been working with the Ukrainians for several weeks now, the most important thing is coordination with the railways. Several companies have already received specific proposals for transportation from the Ukrainian-Polish border to the port of Klaipeda,” Skuodis said.
At the same time, he noted that the main problem lies in the different width of the railway track of the Russian and European types.
“It is rather difficult to switch from Russian standard tracks to European ones in Poland, then to the Kaunas intermodal terminal and beyond. These are issues related to the availability of wagons and other things,” Skuodis said.
According to him, a trial train is already planned, which should leave in the coming weeks.
“The trial run is scheduled for April. We are ready for our part, we just need customers, and we can try in late April – early May, then we’ll see. Of course, the most direct route will be through Belarus, but this country is involved in certain military operations, therefore it would be impossible,” Skuodis said.
Grain export from Ukraine was disrupted due to Russia’s military actions on Ukrainian territory.
According to the head of the European Commission in Lithuania, Marius Vashchega, Ukraine occupies 10% of the world wheat market, 13% – barley, 15% – corn, more than 50% of the sunflower oil market.
Global demand for steel in 2022 will increase by only 0.4% and amount to 1.84 billion tons (1.834 billion tons in 2021), the World Steel Association predicts.
In 2023, according to WSA expectations, steel demand will increase by 2.2%, to 1.881 billion tons.
The total demand for steel in the Russian Federation, CIS countries and Ukraine this year, according to WSA forecasts, will fall by 23.6% to 44.6 million tons (58.5 million tons in 2021). In 2023, an increase of 1.1% is expected, to 45.1 million tons. At the same time, steel consumption in Russia will fall by 20%, to 35.1 million tons against 43.9 million tons in 2021.
CIS COUNTRIES, DEMAND, RUSSIA, STEEL, WORLD STEEL ASSOCIATION
Inflation in Ukraine by the end of 2022 may exceed 20% due to the consequences of a full-scale war, but it will be controlled, the National Bank of Ukraine said on Thursday.
According to the report, the increase in the price of goods and services will be due, in particular, to disruption of production processes, logistical problems due to the temporary occupation of part of the territories, the destruction of transport infrastructure and, as a result, an unevenly distributed supply across individual regions.
In addition, the inflation growth will be affected by the pass-through effects of the devaluation of the hryvnia exchange rate that occurred on the eve of the war and the high cost of energy in the world, which will put pressure on the cost of fuel, goods and services with a significant share of energy in the cost.
At the same time, price growth will be restrained by measures taken by the National Bank and the government of Ukraine, including temporary fixing of the hryvnia exchange rate, which curbs the likely worsening of expectations and an increase in the price of imported goods, tax cuts, including indirect taxation of imports, price fixing for housing and communal services, and administrative regulation of prices for a number of foodstuffs and fuels.
An additional constraint will have an oversupply of certain agricultural crops due to limited export opportunities.
It is indicated that after the resumption of the functioning of monetary transmission channels, the National Bank will again apply the discount rate and other monetary instruments to keep inflation expectations under control and gradually reduce inflation.
Uber, after receiving an approval from the city authorities, resumes work in Kyiv, the company’s press service said on Thursday.
At the same time, the company notes that it will not charge a commission for the service, so the full cost of trips will go to drivers.
“From today, Uber has resumed operations in Kyiv. To support the city’s immediate recovery, Uber will not charge any ride fees, meaning the full fare paid by passengers will go directly to local drivers. Uber will also donate 10,000 free rides to government employees and other critical infrastructure workers who provide the necessary assistance and services to the people of Kiev,” Anabel Diaz, regional manager of Uber in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, was quoted as saying.
Uber also continues to operate in other Ukrainian cities: Lviv, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Vinnitsa, Chernivtsi, Khmelnitsky, Lutsk and Rivne.
In addition, the company added that in addition to resuming core operations, Uber continues to initiate social projects in cooperation with non-governmental organizations, volunteer centers and businesses to support Ukrainians.
Uber, in particular, offers promotional codes for free trips to blood donation centers for donors from DonorUA – they are available in all cities where the platform operates (in Kyiv, Lviv, Chernivtsi, Vinnitsa, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Khmelnitsky, Rivne and Lutsk). In addition, Uber recently launched the Uber Connect&Van service in Lviv with a special promotional code for donating goods for internally displaced persons. The initiative is implemented in cooperation with the NGO “Volunteer Hundred Lions”.
In Ukraine and Poland, Uber has launched a special Uber Aid service that allows Ukrainians to travel to the borders for free.
The Uber Donate button in the app has already raised $3.5 million worldwide, according to the company.
