Hungary became the EU leader in terms of housing price growth: in the third quarter of 2025, residential property prices there rose by 21.1% year-on-year, according to Eurostat data.
Overall, housing prices in the EU, as measured by the House Price Index, rose by 5.5% in July-September 2025 compared to the same quarter in 2024, and by 5.1% in the eurozone. Compared to the second quarter of 2025, growth was 1.6% in both the EU and the eurozone.
Eurostat notes that among the EU countries for which data is available, only Finland (-3.1%) recorded an annual decline in prices, while the rest saw growth. Apart from Hungary, the most significant price increases were recorded in Portugal (+17.7%) and Bulgaria (+15.4%).
Source: http://relocation.com.ua/hungary-showed-the-highest-growth-in-housing-prices-in-the-eu/
Ukraine, Romania, and Moldova have agreed to establish a trilateral chamber of commerce and industry, according to Mykola Kutsak, chairman of the Chernivtsi Regional Council.
“In practice, this could mean closer cooperation between our countries and financial assistance to Moldova and Ukraine on their path to the EU. In particular, from our position, we will be talking about Ukraine’s recovery from the consequences of the hostilities,” Kutsak explained.
According to him, representatives of the three countries, the European Parliament, and the European Union are involved in the initiative. A working group has been set up to prepare for the launch of the future platform, which will coordinate further steps to form the structure and mechanisms of the chamber.
A new project has been launched in Ukraine with the support of the US government-funded AGRO Agricultural and Rural Development Program. The project will strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of water user organizations and promote the implementation of modern approaches to land reclamation infrastructure management, according to the press service of the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture.
The Ministry of Economy noted that the project is being implemented by the Association of Water User Organizations (AWUO) and is designed to form a long-term partnership between Ukraine and the US in the field of hydraulic reclamation.
“The launch of this project makes it possible to combine state policy, the expertise of the professional community, and the support of international partners to form a sustainable model for managing irrigation infrastructure and expanding farmers’ access to modern technologies,” explained Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture Iryna Ovcharenko, whose words are quoted in the report.
It is noted that within the framework of the project, agricultural producers will receive comprehensive consulting support on the creation and operation of water user organizations, management of engineering infrastructure, and ensuring their financial sustainability. A separate area of focus is a professional training program for irrigation managers, aimed at improving the efficiency of land reclamation systems and long-term planning for their development.
In addition, AOWC experts will conduct technical audits of the irrigation networks of 25 agricultural producers and five water user organizations, based on the results of which individual solutions for infrastructure modernization will be developed. It is expected that within the framework of the project, Ukrainian farmers will establish cooperation with American manufacturers of irrigation equipment and suppliers of management and service solutions.
“The development of water user organizations is a key element in the restoration and modernization of irrigation in Ukraine (…) It will also accelerate the restoration of Ukraine’s irrigation infrastructure, as experts estimate that the level of wear and tear reaches about 80%,” Ovcharenko emphasized.
The Ministry of Economy reminded that the development of hydraulic reclamation is of strategic importance for Ukraine’s agro-industrial complex. Since the start of the full-scale war, irrigated areas have decreased from 525,000 hectares in 2021 to 137,000 hectares in 2024. At the same time, the potential for restoring irrigation in Ukraine is at least 1 million hectares.
As of early 2026, 73 water user organizations have been established in 14 regions of Ukraine, including 19 in 2025.
US President Donald Trump said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he expects to sign a law regulating the structure of the cryptocurrency market, which will cover Bitcoin in particular, in the near future. According to him, the administration is striving to ensure that the US remains the “crypto capital of the world.” Trump also recalled that he had previously signed the GENIUS Act and added that Congress is working “very diligently” on a new set of rules for crypto assets, which he “hopes to sign very soon.”
Trump’s statements were accompanied by increased volatility in the cryptocurrency market: according to industry publications, Bitcoin initially fell after the comments from Davos, but then partially recovered and returned to levels around $90,000 as investors assessed the signals regarding regulation and the overall news background.
CRYPTO MARKET, DAVOS, LAW, TRUMP, USA
On Thursday, a ceremony was held in Davos to sign the founding documents of a new international initiative by US President Donald Trump, which the American media has dubbed the Board of Peace (in a number of publications – “Council of Peace”). According to media reports, the documents were signed by representatives of Azerbaijan, Argentina, Armenia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Mongolia, the UAE, Pakistan, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Kosovo.
The ceremony was held publicly and was reported by American media outlets, which published footage and details of the signing of the charter. According to ABC News, the charter establishes an expanded mandate for the structure as an “international organization” that goes beyond a single regional dossier.
It should be noted that Kosovo is a partially recognized state: Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, declared in 2008, and continues to consider the region its territory (the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija).
The prolonged cold spell in Europe is pushing gas prices up. The spot price for “day ahead” delivery on the benchmark European TTF hub closed at $486 per 1,000 cubic meters on Wednesday, adding 11% in just one trading day. This is the highest level since June 2025.
On Thursday, trading opened at $491. At the moment, the price has adjusted to $477.
Air temperatures in Europe in January this year are falling to their lowest levels in the last decade and a half. Overall, January (which is already the coldest winter month) is expected to be three degrees colder than the climatic norm and four degrees colder than last year.
Clear weather is accompanied by low wind speeds, or even calm conditions. This increases the load on the power system, as it reduces the output of wind farms. The reliability of the power system is maintained primarily by underground gas storage facilities, which are the most flexible source and closest to the points of consumption.
The average level of gas reserves in underground storage facilities in Europe fell to 48.4% at the end of the gas day on January 20, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe. This is 15 percentage points lower than the average for the last five years. At the moment, European underground gas storage facilities are ahead of the usual rate of consumption by four weeks. Moreover, the GIE observation base knows of examples when such a level (or even much higher – 59%) of reserves was reached only by the end of the withdrawal season and the start of injection.
By the end of 2025, countries in the region had purchased 109 million tons of LNG (142 billion cubic meters in regasified volume), which is 28% more than in 2024. In January 2026, liquefied gas imports could reach 10 million tons, which is 24% higher than a year earlier. And this could be a new record for the European gas industry. Despite high demand, there remains a large unused capacity reserve – on January 20, terminals were operating at 51% of their capacity. There is also a noticeable trend of declining LNG stocks at terminals.
