About half of Ukrainians are counting on an improvement in the situation in the country after the presidential election and believe that the new team of the head of state should be given at least a year to achieve positive results. According to results of a survey conducted by the Sociological Group Rating during the past two weeks of April, 48% of respondents expect an improvement in the situation in the country as a result of presidential elections. Some 25% have no hopes for changes, another 10% expect deterioration. Residents in Ukraine’s southern and eastern regions are the most optimistic, along with younger respondents and supporters of showman and presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelensky.
Half of respondents believe the new president’s team should be given at least a year to show positive results. Despite this, a quarter of respondents want their achievements to appear within six months, another 14% want to see them in three months and 8% are waiting for immediate changes. Among the young respondents, residents of southern and central Ukraine are slightly more than those who are willing to wait a year or more to see the achievements of the work of the future head of state.
Some 28% of respondents are convinced that this election rather united the country. At the same time, 24% believe that the split has intensified. A third of respondents say this presidential election neither split nor united Ukraine. Most of those who see consolidating processes are among Zelensky supporters (38%). Every fifth respondent sees the possibility of a split. But among Poroshenko supporters, one in three predicts division, compared to 17% who predict the country will unite.
Some 76% of respondents say this is normal when their family members, relatives or acquaintances support a different candidate. Despite this, 9% consider this situation to be a mistake, while noting that they will not try to influence the choice. An equal number say they will try to convince their loved ones to change their minds, mostly among Poroshenko’s supporters – 22%.
Sociological Group Rating conducted a survey of electoral attitudes of Ukrainians from April 12 to April 16, 2019 among Ukrainians who are 18 and older. The sample is representative by age, gender, region, and type of settlement. Some 3,000 persons took part via personal formal interview (face-to-face). The margin of error of the survey does not exceed 1.8%.
Ukreximbank (Kyiv) and China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) on April 17 signed a framework agreement on cooperation in Kyiv, a press release from the bank said. The agreement foresees that Sinosure will provide insurance support for those projects for the which applications were filed through Ukreximbank and contracts were concluded by Chinese enterprises in Ukraine. In particular, the matter concerns the implementation of construction projects in Ukraine and other countries, in which Ukreximbank is involved, as well as projects in the field of infrastructure, agriculture, energy, transportation, oil, gas and chemical industries.
The total limit of Sinosure financial insurance for use by Ukreximbank will be $500 million. The loan term will be set depending on the parameters of each contract and could reach 15 years, the report said.
“An agreement on cooperation for the first time signed between the Ukrainian bank and China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation is a landmark event, as it opens up great potential for expanding external financing channels for the key sectors of the national economy,” the press service of Ukreximbank said, citing chairman of the bank board Oleksandr Hrytsenko.
Sinosure is the official export credit agency of China, founded in 2001. Sinosure is the only state-financed insurance organization.
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Assets of insurance companies managed by the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) grew by 32.4% in 2018, to UAH 2.050 billion, according to a report of the commission that audited the operations of the bureau for 2018.
Of this amount, bank deposits in national currency amounted to UAH 1.661 billion, which is 65.5% more than a year earlier, in foreign currency – 323.6 million (a rise of 12.5%).
The share of deposits in total assets was 66.3%, while a year earlier it was 64.8%.
According to the report, the funds of the victims protection fund and the MTIBU insurance guarantee fund in 2018 were placed in the State Export-Import Bank of Ukraine (Ukreximbank, 6.6% of the total amount of funds placed), Oschadbank (23.9%), Ukrgasbank (28%) , UkrSibbank (0.2%), Credit Agricole Bank (5%), Kredobank (4.1%), OTP Bank (1.8%), Pravex Bank (5%), TAScombank (4.4%), and FUIB (2%).
In addition, the MTIBU manages the assets of insurers invested in local government bonds in national currency in the amount of UAH 203 million, which is 2.5 times more than in 2017, and 247.4 million in foreign currency (2.7 times more).
MTIBU members are 51 insurance companies.
Ukraine has updated the requirements to import of animals and livestock products, the press service of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumers’ Protection has reported.
According to the report, Ukraine introduces the principle of zoning, when the import of livestock products is allowed from some zones, if not the entire territory of the country is free from animal diseases. Also, the new rules provide for a smaller number of diagnostic studies of live animals on the territory of the exporting country, which will reduce the financial burden on the importing company.
In addition, the requirements for the food producer have been eliminated, so that raw materials originate exclusively from the territory of the exporting country, and new categories of products are added. In particular, the requirements for the import of gelatin, collagen, colostrum, frog legs, snails and another 33 products were set.
According to the press service of the food service, the Ministry of Agricultural Policy and Food approved the relevant resolution in November 2018, and the Justice Ministry registered it on April 4, 2019. The resolution comes into force six months after publication.
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