KYIV. July 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – In January-June 2015, Ukraine exported 14,680 tonnes of pork, which is 8.2 times more than in the same period in 2014.
According to customs statistics released by the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, in monetary terms exports of these products in the first half of 2015 amounted to $29.75 million.
Pork imports during this period totaled 1,520 tonnes compared to 18,660 tonnes a year earlier. In monetary terms, this accounted for $3.79 million.
Exports of poultry and by-products increased by 9.8%, to 75,830 tonnes for nearly $103.43 million. Imports totaled 23,070 tonnes ($15.64 million), which is 6.2% more than the figure in the first half of 2014, which amounted to 21,730 tonnes ($23.93 million).
KYIV. July 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Metinvest mining and steel group has established a trade office in Poland – Metinvest Polska.
According to a company press release, the activity of the representative office is aimed at strengthening cooperation with the customers of Metinvest rolled steel and providing them with a prompt and effective service.
The press release said Europe is one of the priority markets for Metinvest Group. The company supplies about 4.4 million tonnes of steel, or 34% of total sales to the region.
Among European countries, Poland is the second largest buyer of Metinvest goods. The Polish economy consumes more than 12.2 million tonnes of steel a year. In 2014, Polish steel consumption per capita increased by 17%. The country is actively involved in regional trade: it imports up to 70% of steel consumed and exports half of production volumes.
In Europe, 20 sales offices and warehouses of Metinvest operate, in particular in Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Britain, Romania, and Bulgaria. Overall, the company has sales offices in all the key steel consuming regions. More than 6,500 customers buy steel products and raw materials from Metinvest, and 1,700 of them are European companies.
The Metinvest Group metallurgical enterprises are located in Ukraine and Europe.
KYIV. July 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin and his Bulgarian counterpart Daniel Mitov were on a working visit to Odesa region on Monday during which they discussed a project for repairing the Odesa-Reni highways and agreed on the joint construction of a ferry across the Danube.
Klimkin and Mitov preliminarily discussed the possibility of attracting EU funds under the said projects, according to Klimkin’s comment available to Interfax-Ukraine. This question will be also discussed at the presidential level during a meeting between Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his Bulgarian counterpart Rosen Plevneliev, who is to come to Ukraine on an official visit, Klimkin said.
“Agreement was reached on joint construction of a ferry across the Danube, which would open the way from Ukraine to Romania and Bulgaria,” Klimkin said.
On the agenda were also the creation of a new business incubator for small and medium-sized enterprises, and cooperation in education and culture, he added.
“During the talks, the Bulgarian side has promised to raise the quota for the education of Ukrainian citizens of Bulgarian origin at Bulgarian universities,” Klimkin said.
KYIV. July 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – State enterprise Ukrspyrt plans to deliver 300,000 decaliters (dal) of molasses alcohol to Georgia by the end of September 2015.
According to a press release issued by the state-owned enterprise, Borschevsky distillery, which produces molasses alcohol for exports to Georgia, started operating in Ternopil region on June 20.
According to Ukrspyrt Acting Director Roman Ivaniuk, the approximate volume of alcohol for exports, according to the signed contract, is currently 300,000 dal.
“The next priority alcohol exports destinations are Austria, Poland and Bulgaria. The work is at the stage of signing contracts,” the company said.
As reported, Ukrspyrt plans by to export 2 million dal of spirit by the end of 2015.
Ukrspyrt is subordinated to the Ministry of Agricultural Policy and Food. In 2014, Ukrspyrt plants produced about 15 million decaliters of alcohol. The entire volume was sold in the domestic market.
KYIV. July 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering investing in the share capital of PJSC Raiffeisen Bank Aval (RBA), Ukraine’s second largest bank with Western capital, to obtain a significant minor stake.
The EBRD Board of Directors plans to consider the proposal on July 22.
The proposed investment in Raiffeisen Bank Aval “will send a strong positive signal to the market during the period of severe political and economic crisis in Ukraine,” the EBRD said in a statement.
The cost of the EBRD’s investment in the bank has not been disclosed.
Raiffeisen Bank Aval was founded in 1992. It has around 670 branches across the country, serving nearly 3 million customers. At the end of May 2015 Raiffeisen Bank International (Austria) owned a 96.5% stake in the bank.
RBA ranked seventh among 133 operating banks in the country on April 1, 2015 by total assets (UAH 52.8 billion), according to the National Bank of Ukraine. Its charter capital stood at UAH 3.003 billion, net worth – UAH 4.105 billion.
KYIV. July 6 (Interfax-Ukraine) – PJSC AvtoKrAZ (Kremenchuk, Poltava region), the only Ukrainian producer of heavy vehicles, in January-June 2015 increased production by 20.5% from the same period in 2014, to 577 units.
According to the press service of the company, KrAZ sales in the first half of 2015 rose by 22.7%, to 519 units.
Of the total amount of vehicles produced exports accounted for 32%, the domestic market – 67%.
In addition to basic production, specifically trucks, in the first half of the year the plant shipped four semi-trailers and 13 trailers to the customer, while in January-June last year these products were not manufactured.
The report notes that in June the plant increased production by 30% from May this year and by 22.5% from June of the past year, to 125 vehicles, while in monetary terms production grew by 26.2%.
The press service also said that in late June the plant passed three mobile pumping units to Energoatom to be in keeping power units in a safe condition.
New KrAZ-63221 trucks are being manufactured in cooperation with Tital, a Ukrainian developer and manufacturer of fire and rescue vehicles and equipment.
The ultimate customer of these vehicles is Yuzhnoukrainsk nuclear power plant (Mykolaiv region).
