Italian export credit agency SACE will allocate EUR1.5bn to support trade and financial operations, particularly in the health care and infrastructure sectors.
According to the website of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, this was discussed during the meeting between the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Ukraine Pier Francesco Dzadzo, where the Ukrainian side urged SACE to strengthen cooperation with Ukraine and expand the types of covered risks.
In addition, the export credit agency intends to support investments of Italian companies in Ukraine and provide export credits, soft loans and direct investments.
First Deputy Prime Minister noted the importance of supporting Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which is the backbone of the national economy. She stressed that the Government also expects to intensify cooperation with the Italian Agency for Cooperation Development (AICS) to promote local economic development, job creation and support SMEs.
In addition, the sides discussed the return of Ukrainians. The provision of housing for Ukrainians remains important.
SACE is an Italian export credit agency and an active participant of the largest international organizations in the field of export credit. SACE’s activities are regulated by European Union legislation and the OECD Agreement on Officially Supported Export Credits.
AGENCY, INVESTMENTS, ITALY, Ministries of Economy, trade support
The government action plan for 2024 envisages measures to open Ukrainian embassies in the Philippines, Colombia, Panama, Guyana, Paraguay and Uruguay.
According to the Government Action Plan, during 2024 it is planned to undertake administrative, organizational and financial measures to start the activities of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of the Philippines. It is also planned to start the process of opening embassies in Colombia, Panama, Guyana, Paraguay and Uruguay. It is noted that it is envisaged to open one full-time consular office of Ukraine and five non-staff consular offices.
COLOMBIA, embassies, Guyana, PANAMA, PARAGUAY, PHILIPPINES, URUGUAY
On February 14, Kyiv hosted special event for Ukrainian agricultural community – international conference: Sustainable Agribusiness: “Traditions. Niches. Eco-practices. Technologies.
The conference was organized and conducted by the agro-media agency Sapienza.media with the support of specialized associations: Ukrainian Fruit and Vegetable Association (UFPA) and the Association of Amaranth and Amaranth Products Producers.
For 5 years in a row, Sapienza has been holding traditional conferences on “Increasing Profits in Agribusiness” as part of the large-scale agricultural exhibition AGROWESNA. This year’s conference at the Kyiv Exhibition Center brought together more than 200 leading Ukrainian farmers.
“Why do we hold our traditional Open International Conferences? To allow people to communicate in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere, to exchange ideas and experiences, to find new contacts that will strengthen you, that will recharge you and inspire you to new results and achievements! This is especially important in such a difficult time – to develop, to work no matter what! Today we have 20 speakers, more than 100 participants have registered, some of them were under occupation, some partially lost their business, some recovered only by 30%! But we are all united by the main thing – let’s keep going, don’t stop, don’t give up, develop agribusiness together!
This is a gathering of professionals, tireless workers who are moving Ukraine forward and contributing to Ukraine’s food security! It is thanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine that we are able to organize such events. And we are inspired by your tirelessness, dear producers and farmers. And we will continue this tradition of conferences to not only restore but also develop Ukrainian agribusiness according to the best standards of quality and sustainability in order to strengthen Ukraine’s food security no matter what,” says Kateryna Zvereva, founder of the agro-media agency Sapienza.
“We cannot avoid the war factor in the development of fruit and vegetable production in Ukraine, and the impact it has on the fruit and vegetable sector, and indeed the entire agricultural sector. It can be stated that over the past two years, it has affected the fruit and vegetable sector to a lesser extent than the grain sector, but it certainly has an impact.
I hope that we have temporarily lost virtually the most important regions for production and storage, especially of vegetable products, and I am talking about the south of Ukraine. Both the areas and infrastructure for storage and processing of these products, as well as the source for irrigation, we are talking about the Kakhovka Reservoir. This is not a significant loss – it is an irreparable loss for this region, nature, and the environment as a whole.
However, it can be stated that in 2022-2023, Ukraine almost completely managed to replace in terms of gross production of fruit and vegetables, especially vegetable crops, what was lost in the south of Ukraine quite quickly. And even melons, which were not associated with Kherson, were quickly and successfully replaced by other crops in almost all regions of Ukraine,” said Taras Bashtannik, director of the Ukrainian Fruit and Vegetable Association, during the conference.
Paul Chibai, a Canadian specialist in cooperative development, shared his unique experience of the cooperative business model and its resilience in times of crisis.
“Ukrainians have been very active in creating cooperatives in every sector of the economy in Canada. Cooperatives provide stability in times of crisis. This has been proven over and over again in our history. It’s simple math. Being a single producer has little effect.
But together, we have much more stability and influence on the market, on the regulations that the government gives us, and on the influences that the government has on business.
And because there are so many producers-there are thousands-and the cooperatives themselves can be interconnected. This gives the model stability in times of crisis. There are also a lot of studies that have been done when cooperatives go through crises, such as the one in 2008. There is a lot of evidence that cooperatives not only withstood these crises, but also moved to new production models,” says Paul Chibai.
Ihor Vishtak, Director of the Agricultural Development Department of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, spoke about the state support for sustainable agribusiness in Ukraine.
“The Ministry of Agrarian Policy, together with international experts, has developed an order on best agricultural practices to implement European aquis. This order was signed in January 2022.
It provides examples and principles for applying primarily mineral fertilizers in areas that are vulnerable to nitrate ingress into groundwater. It is mandatory for use. Currently, due to the martial law, no control measures are being taken. We understand that conditions for farmers are already difficult. But this order exists, and after the end of martial law, we will monitor its compliance.
On the one hand, it means certain restrictions, and on the other hand, it means taking care of the environment and all living organisms, including human health. Also, our Ministry, together with the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, has developed legislation on waste management in organic production, and adopted a number of regulations that also bring us closer to the European Union,” added Ihor Vishtak.
In addition, all attendees had the opportunity to learn about unique and relevant information from Ukrainian scientists, experts and practitioners of the agricultural market.
Oleksandr Duda, Chairman of the Association of Amaranth and Amaranth Products Producers, spoke about the healing properties, integrated approach to growing and processing amaranth in Ukraine, as well as a wide range of products made from amaranth and new promising developments during the conference.
Mykhailo Nagornyak, the author of the new unique variety, a well-known Vinnytsia-based breeder and director of Mnagor, told the conference guests about the blue and yellow sugar corn from Ukraine that has made a splash on the global market.
Oleksandr Yareschenko, Deputy Director for Research at the Institute of Horticulture of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine, spoke about niche berry crops and opportunities for producers to cooperate to increase profits.
Elvira Nimchuk, a representative of the BioNorma Group of Companies, will talk about the latest technologies and solutions that can help producers improve the quality of their products and increase their yields.
Viacheslav Polishchuk, Head of Horticulture at Ukravit, will present the best domestic plant protection products and services for sustainable production.
Mykhailo Soroka, Director of AGROMOMM (Dnipro), shared an example of successful use of innovative technologies in the garlic industry in the market of ameliorants.
Leonid Fadeev, Director of Fadeev Agro and author of the Strong Seeds technology, shared the secrets of the innovative seed production technology with the audience.
Vladyslav Razkevych, Head of Eucalyptus R, shared his experience of how to get generous harvests while saving production resources.
Oleksandr Doynikov, Managing Partner of Viteo Group (Viteo Hemp), spoke about technical hemp, an extremely useful plant that has an incredible number of necessary qualities that can be successfully used in many areas of life.
Sofia Burtak, Head of the Board of the Rural Women’s Business Network, spoke about the successful experience of Ukrainian cooperatives.
The participants heard about innovations in agricultural production for sustainable development and sustainable agribusiness practices from Anna Danyliak, an expert in agricultural greening at the NGO Ecodia.
The conference was moderated and hosted by Vira Chupia, Head of Information Projects at Sapienza agro-media agency.
The conference was supported by the We Prosper Entrepreneurship Development Project for the War-Affected Population in Ukraine, implemented by the Agricultural Advisory Service and the Rural Women’s Business Network in partnership with the SOCODEVI NGO, funded by the Government of Canada.
The conference organizers are grateful to the leading agricultural media, economic and analytical agencies for their information support: Agroexpert, East-Fruit.com, Interfax-Ukraine, APK-Inform Agency, Agri-gator.com.ua, Exclusive Technologies magazine (Agrotimeteh.com.ua), Agribusiness Today and Agronomy Today, Multisectoral Platform “Healthy Nutrition in Ukrainian”, Platform “Mission – Health: Together for Active Longevity”, Seeds.org.ua.
Interfax-Ukraine is a media partner
Nikopol-based seamless stainless steel pipe manufacturer Centravis increased its production to 12.2 thousand tons in 2023, up 12% year-on-year. However, the production situation may deteriorate if the government does not start paying back VAT arrears.
Almost all the products were exported. In total, in 2023, the company exported seamless stainless steel pipes to 38 countries. Most of them were shipped to Germany, Italy, and the United States.
The EU countries were in the highest demand, followed by the US market, and then the Asian and Middle Eastern markets. In particular, Centravis has fulfilled orders for companies from Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, South Korea, Oman, the UAE, etc.
“In 2023, we realized that the war could last for a long time and we must be prepared for it. There is no point in postponing something that will make your product better today. Similarly, you should not refuse to enter new markets or stop working with your team. We can’t just stand still and try to get through these difficult days, because we have no idea what the timeframe of the war is. Therefore, we are moving forward, improving our products, working with new projects and clients. I believe that our team passed the year 2023 with dignity,” said Yuriy Atanasov, CEO of Centravis.
Another important achievement of the past year was the opening of a new production facility in Uzhhorod. It specializes in tool pipes for the world’s leading automotive brands (Volkswagen, Audi, BMW, Chevrolet). The total investment amounted to over UAH 50 million. The new plant employs about 100 people, and in 2024 it is planned to expand and build the second stage.
At the same time, there is a big problem that hinders the company as much as the shelling by Russian troops. It is the VAT refund.
“The state’s debt to the company is over €10 million. It has never been like this in 30 years of operation. We won the courts, but a court decision cannot pay salaries and buy raw materials. I hope this issue will be resolved soon, as it is difficult for us to operate under the double pressure of the war and VAT arrears,” emphasized Yuriy Atanasov.
According to Centravis representatives, in 2023, the company took part in a number of notable projects. These include a project to produce hydrogen-powered cars in the EU, construction of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), development of onshore oil and gas wells in the United States, and construction of a new power plant in Alabama (USA). The company also represented the Ukrainian industry at the Adipec international exhibition in Abu Dhabi with its own exposition.
Centravis is currently one of the world’s ten largest producers of seamless stainless steel pipes. The company has production facilities in the cities of Nikopol and Uzhhorod, as well as sales offices in countries such as the United States, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, and the United Arab Emirates, and cooperates with Benteler Automotive, Buhlmann Group, Webco, and others – with various companies on different continents.
Last year, Centravis was ranked among the top 200 leaders in the Ukrainian economy.
In January this year, Ukraine increased exports of semi-finished carbon steel products in physical terms by 5.8 times compared to the same period last year, up to 222.2 thousand tons from 38.341 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Friday, exports of carbon steel semi-finished products increased 5 times in monetary terms to $105.491 million from $20.897 million.
The main exports were to Bulgaria (37.07% of supplies in monetary terms), Poland (11.91%) and Colombia (11.15%).
In January 2024, Ukraine did not import semi-finished products, as in January 2023.
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine reduced exports of carbon steel semi-finished products in physical terms by 36.7% compared to 2022, to 1 million 203.454 thousand tons, while exports in monetary terms decreased by 48.9% to $608.516 million. The main exports were made to Bulgaria (36.66% of supplies in monetary terms), Poland (23.01%), and Italy (9.60%).
In addition, in 2023, Ukraine imported 96 tons of semi-finished products from China (98.26%) and Turkey (1.74%) worth $172 thousand.
In 2022, Ukraine decreased exports of carbon steel semi-finished products by 72% year-on-year to 1 million 899.729 thousand tons in physical terms and by 70.9% in monetary terms to $1 billion 191.279 million. The main exports were made to Bulgaria (26.55% of supplies in monetary terms), Poland (13.97%) and Italy (12.13%).
In addition, Ukraine imported 5,558 thousand tons of similar products in 2022, which is 85.7% less than in 2021. In monetary terms, imports decreased by 86% to $3.634 million. Imports were carried out from the Russian Federation (96.92% of supplies before the war), China (1.84%), and Romania (1.21%).
Tobacco concern Philip Morris International has increased shipments of finished products in Ukraine by 8.4% in 2023 compared to 2022, the company said in a press release.
“For 2023, our finished product shipments in Ukraine increased by 8.4%. This figure includes both imported and locally produced products. The increase in shipments occurred as part of our strategy to regain market share, which we temporarily lost due to the war and the forced shutdown of our factory in Kharkiv region,” the company’s press service quoted Philip Morris’ CFO in Ukraine Sergey Kalnoochenko as saying.
According to the published financial report of the company, in the fourth quarter of 2023 PMI increased total shipments of cigarettes and tobacco products for electric heating in Ukraine by 14.9% compared to the same period of 2022.
In total, total finished goods shipments in the company’s European region, which includes Ukraine, increased 2.6% to 53.6 billion cigarettes in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared to the fourth quarter of the prior year, primarily driven by markets in Poland (up 10.6%), Italy (up 4.0%) and Ukraine (up 14.9%), partially offset by lower shipments in France (down 13.7%) and Germany (down 6.2%).
In total, Philip Morris International’s 2023 revenue increased 10.7% to $35.2 billion compared to 2022.
According to the report, the total number of adult IQOS users globally at the end of 2023 was estimated at approximately 28.6 million, an increase of 3.7 million from December 2022.
Philip Morris International (PMI) is a leading international tobacco company that has been operating in the Ukrainian market since 1994. Over 30 years of work, the company has invested more than $700 mln in the Ukrainian economy.
Philip Morris in Ukraine has suspended the operation of its factory in Kharkiv region since February 24, 2022. Since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine, the company has secured a steady supply of its products to Ukraine through imports from 8 PMI factories and a temporary partnership with another international manufacturer in Ukraine.
Philip Morris plans to launch a new factory in Lviv region in the second quarter of 2024 with an investment of $30 mln.
In 2023, the company paid more than UAH 30 bln of taxes to budgets of different levels in Ukraine.
