President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko says that the reforms implemented in Ukraine are aimed at improving the investment climate. “We are resolutely implementing reforms to improve the investment climate significantly. The evaluation of the World Bank can be more trustworthy than the words of the president. In the Doing Business rating, Ukraine got from the 137th place, before my presidential term, to the 76th place – last year. No country has shown such dynamics. And we do everything possible to get to the top 50 shortly,” Poroshenko said in an interview with the German Handelsblatt business newspaper, quoted by the presidential press service on Monday.
According to Poroshenko, there was a thorough reform of the tax industry in Ukraine, reform in the education, medical and pension sectors, as well as energy sector in terms of state procurement and privatization, which the IMF did not initially believe in. Ukraine also carried out a revolutionary reform of the banking sector. “All these are very unpopular, yet required steps,” he said.
The president added that following the results of the competition for obtaining licenses for the use of 4G communications by mobile operators, Ukraine got UAH 8 billion instead of the expected UAH 5 billion.
“The most important thing is the opinion of investors, and many influential companies have come or returned to Ukraine,” the president said.
Metinvest mining and metal group has placed eurobonds under the 2012 eurobond refinancing program and pre-export financing facility ((PXF-financing): $825 million bonds due on April 23, 2023 and $525 million bonds due on April 23, 2026. According to information in the Bloomberg system, five-year bonds were placed at 98.986% of their face value. Taking into account the coupon of 7.75%, yield for them is 8% per annum.
The eight year bonds were placed at 98.583% of their face value. Taking into account the coupon of 8.5%, yield for them is 8.75% per annum.
As reported, on March 19 Metinvest offered the holders of eurobonds circulating in the market, the total nominal volume of which is $1.187 billion, to redeem the securities ahead of schedule.
The group at the initial stage of the offer received proposals for the buyback of eurobonds for $1.068 billion. In addition, the holders of eurobonds worth $1.149 billion agreed to amend the terms of their circulation.
The deadline for applications for redemption expires at 16:00 London time on April 19, 2018.
Metinvest also reported on achieving agreement with the creditors, who provided PXF-financing, on the revision of the terms of loans, including their extension.
Synchronously the group announced the issue of new bonds.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman supports the initiative to strengthen the adopted law on protecting businesses from the actions of law enforcement officers (the so-called “stop masks-show” law) by establishing controllers’ liability for exceeding their powers.
“The law is designed to restore order in relations between the law enforcement system and business. Our priority is to improve living conditions, but this is possible amid the development of the economy and entrepreneurship,” the government’s press service quoted Groysman as saying on April 7 at a meeting of the interdepartmental commission on the observance of the rights and legal interests of individuals by law enforcement agencies.
He said that the key task of the new commission, which includes mainly representatives of business associations and the Office of the Business Ombudsman, was to consider all cases of pressure on businesses.
“If there is excess of authority, we will give our conclusions and we will apply to law enforcement bodies so that they take personnel decisions regarding dishonest workers… But there will also be requirements for business entities – honest business, fair payment of taxes. This balance must be maintained,” he said.
He suggested that entrepreneurs, before the next meeting of the commission, determine cases of pressure on businesses so that specific decisions on further actions could be taken.
According to the government’s press service, the adopted government law on business protection should be implemented and strengthened with new legislative initiatives – in the context of establishing the liability of controllers for exceeding their authority.
As reported, on November 16, 2017, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, adopted at first reading and as a whole draft law No. 7275 on amendments to some legislative acts to ensure that law enforcement agencies observe the rights of participants in criminal proceedings and other persons during pretrial investigations.
President Petro Poroshenko signed the law on December 1.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has warned Germany against participation in the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, suggesting, as an alternative, the modernization of a transit gas pipeline passing through Ukrainian territory.
In an interview with German business newspaper Handelsblatt, extracts from which were published by the Ukrainian service of Deutsche Welle, Poroshenko noted that Nord Stream 2 was a political project that is financed by Russia and has no economic justification.
“Nord Stream 2 is a political bribe for loyalty to Russia, imposing an economic and energy blockade on Ukraine, which will hurt us greatly,” he said.
According to him, an alternative solution is the modernization of the existing transit gas pipeline that passes through Ukraine. Poroshenko also said that the development of the gas transportation infrastructure in Ukraine would not require multibillion investments.
On March 27, Nord Stream 2 AG received the permit for the construction and operation of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline system in the German exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is to pass across the Baltic Sea, connecting Russian suppliers with European consumers at over 1,200 km in length. The pipeline will have capacity for 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. The project has an estimated cost of almost 10 billion euros. Gazprom’s partners in the project are Engie, OMV, Shell and two German companies BASF and Uniper.
In early April, the Verkhovna Rada urged foreign parliaments, governments and the international business community not to participate in the preparation, financing or lobbying of the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.
