The number of tourists from Saudi Arabia to Ukraine reached 48,700 people in nine months of 2021, which is 10 times more than in entire 2019, the State Agency for Tourism Development reported at a recent aviation tourism forum in Boryspil (Kyiv region).The agency clarified that its calculations were based on the assumption that the minimum expenses of one tourist are $2,000, while, according to expert estimates, they amount to $2,000-3,000.The agency indicated that the cost of the promotional campaign in the Saudi Arabian market was $120,000, another $26,000 was spent on promotional tours.Among the success factors, the agency also named the entry of the leading low-cost airline of Saudi Arabia flynas into the Ukrainian market in May this year and the flights of the Ukrainian SkyUp.At the same time, the agency indicated that in the first half of 2021, the number of tourists to Ukraine decreased by 31.54%, to 1.424 million people. The drop in the indicator was primarily due to tourists from Europe, as a result, their share decreased to 70.4% from 80% in the same period in 2020, while the share of tourists from Asia increased from 10.3% to 24.4%.
Until the end of the year, Nova Poshta will robotize zones of freight and small shipments at ten of its sorting centers, currently robots are already involved at 20 facilities, the press service of the group of companies said on Monday.Nova Poshta said that depending on the weight of the parcel, the company uses different types of robots. So, in the areas of sorting small shipments (up to 2 kg), a robot train is used, consisting of two sections.”This is a proprietary development of Nova Poshta and the manufacturer SBR, which has no analogues in Ukraine. The worker puts the parcel on the robot, which takes it to the scanner and moves it to the box, which is responsible for a certain geographical direction. The robots work on a special platform with a monorail, which at the same time serves as their charger. The use of such robots has doubled the productivity of sorting small parcels. Now there are 272 such robots in operation,” the company noted.Axis robots from the Ukrainian company Deus Robots are reportedly used to sort shipments up to 30 kg.”They got this name because they can rotate around their own axis. From an unloading belt, the parcel goes to the robot. Then it drives with the parcel to the scanner and then puts it on a roller conveyor, from which the parcel goes directly into a special delivery bag. Thanks to their dexterity, such robots can work in different sorting areas,” the message says.In addition, Nova Poshta added that the company continues to improve the robotization of cargo terminals. So, in November, a terminal with a fully robotized cargo area was opened in Dnipro.”Some 50 robotic carts, manufactured by SBR, move goods inside the terminal from the unloading area to the loading one. They move on a magnetic belt and can simultaneously carry up to 300 kg and pull 1,000 kg. Such robots can transport up to 5,000 goods per day, which increases the terminal’s productivity by 30%,” the company said.In total, the company already uses 180 robots at various cargo terminals.”While increasing the volume of shipments in Nova Poshta, we strive to remain the fastest delivery in Ukraine and create a flexible system for increasing the sorting capacity using robots. The robotization of sorting terminals allows increasing the productivity without additional workloads for employees. In addition, by automating the processes, we achieve greater accuracy in sorting parcels, as we are able to avoid possible mistakes by reducing the influence of the human factor,” director of the company development Oleksiy Taranenko said.Robots are already working in centers in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Odesa, Boryspil, Melitopol, Pokrovsk, Novomoskovsk, Starobilsk, Korosten, Stry, Sambir, Kovel and Stoyanka. The company plans to create a fully robotic sorting center.
Prices for construction and assembly work in Ukraine in October 2021 increased by 19.6% compared to October 2020, the State Statistics Service has reported.According to the statistics department, prices increased in all construction segments: in residential construction – by 16.1%, in non-residential – by 19.7%, in engineering – by 21.6%.Compared to the previous month, the cost of construction of residential, non-residential buildings and engineering structures increased by 1.8%, 1.5% and 1.7%, respectively.Since the beginning of the year, the rise in prices for construction work amounted to 17.7%, the service added.As reported, in 2020 prices for construction work in Ukraine increased by 3.7% compared to the previous year, while in 2019 – by 6%.The figures are given without taking into account the annexed territory of Crimea and Sevastopol, as well as part of the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the service notes.
China’s Beijing Skyrizon Aviation Industry Investment Co. has filed a lawsuit against Ukraine in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, demanding %4.5 billion in compensation for the violation, in its opinion, of the Sino-Ukrainian intergovernmental agreement of October 1992 on protection of the company’s investment in Motor-Sich shares, the Chinese publication Global Times reported, with reference to Skyrizon.“Chinese investors have suffered significant losses both in Ukraine and in China due to five years of unfair treatment and continued use of illegal measures in Ukraine,” the newspaper reports.At the same time, information about the claim is not yet available on the website of the Hague Arbitration.Earlier it was reported that Skyrizon and other Chinese investors in Motor-Sich shares notified Ukraine of their intention to submit to international arbitration in early September 2020, and sent a direct request to the court in early December as there was no compromise with Kyiv. The initial amount of claims was %3.5 billion. The interests of the Chinese plaintiffs were represented by the international law firms WilmerHale, DLA Piper and Bird & Bird.PJSC Motor-Sich is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of engines for aviation equipment, as well as industrial gas turbine units. It supplies products to more than 100 countries around the world. Last year, Motor-Sich received UAH 906.65 million in net profit against UAH 703.18 million in net loss in the previous year. The company’s revenue increased by 14.1% – up to UAH 11.432 billion.According to a source in the Ukrainian government, currently about 75% of Motor-Sich’s shares are already owned by a group of Chinese owners, and some part of the disputed block of shares acts as a pledge for financing provided, among other things, by China Development Bank.
Ukrainian banks’ cash exchange rates on 29/11/21
Source: Interfax-Ukraine
Head of the Transformation Office Maksym Bakhmatov has announced the presentation of the Big Transport Ring tram-bus route project in Kyiv, the construction of which will take UAH 55 billion and 15-20 years.“For the construction of the Big Transport Ring, Kyiv will need 15 to 20 years and UAH 55 billion. This may seem like large numbers. But this is only UAH 3 billion from the city budget. Such projects are usually funded by international financial institutions,” Bakhmatov wrote on Facebook.According to him, the ring will unite 16 routes and cover six districts of Kyiv. The passenger traffic will be 1.6 million people per day.Bakhmatov noted that the construction of the route will be cheaper and faster than the construction of new metro stations.“On December 21, we will present the project to Kyiv deputies and activists. Further, the project will be handed over to Kyiv for implementation. I invite Kyiv authorities, as well as representatives of the central government, for discussion,” he said.
