KYIV. July 28 (Interfax) – Ukraine has signed loan agreements with the World Bank and Japan for $500 million and $300 million, respectively, Ukrainian Minister of Economic Development and Trade Aivaras Abromavicius said.
“One year on, the $500 million loan (agreement) with the World Bank and the $300 million from Japan have finally been signed. For budgetary needs,” the minister wrote on Twitter on July 24.
He expressed gratitude to the World Bank, the Japanese government and Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko and her team, as well as the Ukrainian parliament and Cabinet.
KYIV. July 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) – PJSC Odesa port-side chemical plant in January-June 2015 saw a net profit of UAH 151.953 million against UAH 116.806 million in net loss in the same period last year.
According to a company report in the information disclosure system of the National Commission on Securities and the Stock Market, its net income in the first half of the year increased two-fold, to UAH 5.801 billion, gross profit amounted to UAH 1.055 billion, whereas in January-June 2014 the company posted a gross loss of UAH 16.764 million.
In January-June 2015, the plant increased production of mineral fertilizers by 11.8% compared to the first half of 2014, to 803,000 tonnes, their sales – by 6.2%, to 784,000 tonnes.
As reported, in 2014 the plant reduced its net loss by 4.2 times, to UAH 270.473 million, while increasing net income by 10.7%, to UAH 5.428 billion.
Production of mineral fertilizers in 2014 amounted to 1.172 million tonnes, their sales – 1.186 million tonnes.
State-owned Odesa port-side chemical plant is engaged in the production of chemical goods, as well as ammonia transshipment by sea. The government recently announced it plans to privatize the plant in 2015 and hopes to receive at least $600 million for the company.
KYIV. July 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Over 50% of business and elite class apartments in Kyiv are bought by residents of other regions of Ukraine, mainly from eastern regions of Ukraine, Park Stone residential complex (Kyiv) said in a press release on Monday, referring to the head of the sales department Dmytro Shostia.
“In 60% of cases finished apartments are bought with the purpose of investment and leasing apartments: people are trying to save their money via investing into high-quality and expensive property, which they believe would be always of great demand. It is hard to predict how capacious the prestige apartment leasing market would be in coming years,” Shostia said.
He said that business and elite class apartments in Kyiv with gross area of 85-150 square meters in Pechersky district are of great demand with buyers.
Despite the fact that since early 2015, prices in Kyiv’s business and premium class apartment blocks have stabilized at $2,000-4,000 per square meter, demand on them grew by 7-10% in June-July, he said.
He said that these apartments are bought using cash, and this allows buyers to receive a discount of 10-25%.
KYIV. July 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) – State enterprise Ukrspecexport saw a rise of 52% in net profit under Ukrainian accounting standards in January-June 2015 year-over-year, to UAH 39.33 million, the company said in a report on Monday.
The company said that its net revenue grew by 98.35% in H1 2015, to UAH 713.16 million. Gross profit rose by 39.95%, to UAH 271.52 million, and operating profit fell by 13.69%, to UAH 20.39 million.
In January-March 2015, Ukrspecexport saw a rise of 2.1 times in net profit under Ukrainian accounting standards year-over-year, to UAH 34.57 million, and its net revenue grew by 90.335, to UAH 445.67 million.
Ukrspecexport is the state’s authorized mediator in foreign economic activities in the field of exports and imports of products and services that are subject to export controls.
Under the government decision, Ukrspecexport and its subsidiaries have been part of state-owned Ukroboronprom concern since December 2010.
KYIV. July 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian-Dutch agro-company LLC (Sumy region) has invested UAH 10 million of own funds in the launch of a milk farm in Chapliyivka of Sumy region.
According to a report on the website of Sumy Regional Administration, the company finished building the cowhouse with a milk pipeline for 226 cows.
The company’s director, Vitaliy Hudymenko, said that today the farm has 718 heads of cattle, including 338 cows.
In 2015, UAH 6.8 million was invested in the development of the facilities.
According to the state register of companies and individuals-businesspeople, the founders of Ukrainian-Dutch agro-company LLC are Dutch Elzasel B.V. and Bontrup Ukraine.
Bontrup Ukraine was founded in 2007. It has around 20,000 hectares of farmland. Bontrup Ukraine is part of Bontrup Holding (the Netherlands) created by Franz Bontrup. The holding has branches in Belgium, Germany, Ukraine, Switzerland, Norway, Britain, Russia, Poland and the United States. Its core business is agriculture, navigation and granite production.
KYIV. July 27 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Agricultural Policy and Food Ministry of Ukraine has proposed that a zero excise duty should be set for ethyl spirit used in the production of diluted acetic acid, perfumes and cosmetics, technical and chemical products.
According to a draft law on amending Article 229 of the Tax Code of Ukraine regarding taxation and regulation of the production and use of spirit, posted on the ministry’s website, the measures will stimulate the development of the spirit sector.
The ministry said that since 2005, the requirement to set a beneficial excise duty on ethyl rectified spirit, which is used to produce vinegar, and ethyl denature spirit for production of perfumes and cosmetics, chemical and other spirit-containing technical products. This resulted in the reduction of production of the above-mentioned products and the drop in spirit production, stoppage of distilleries, reduction of workforce and a decline of tax payments to the budgets of all levels.
At present, the full excise duty is set on spirit irrespective of the purpose of its use (UAH 70.53 per liter of 100% spirit), which restricts its application.
According to an explanatory note to the draft law, household detergent producers refused to use technical spirit made in Ukraine at the high price, as the cost of spirit considerably increases the price of detergents compared to the similar imported products. Ukrainian spirit-containing technical products were replaced by similar goods from Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania and Poland.
The ministry said that the annual production capacity of state distilleries totals over 60 million decaliters, which is four times bigger than the market’s needs. Exports are restricted, as the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU includes a quota of 27,000 tonnes.
“The zero excise duty for the said types of spirit would allow harmonizing the structure of the excise duty under Directive 92/83/EEC and it would allow loading Ukrainian distilleries, improve their financial and economic state and increasing payments to the national budget.
