Swiss International Airlines, part of Lufthansa Group, from March 26 resumed flights from Zurich to Boryspil International Airport (Kyiv) after almost a four-year break. Swiss International Airlines General Manager for Ukraine Rene Koinzack said at a press conference in Kyiv that partnership with Swiss airline will allow Ukrainians to travel to Switzerland four times a week on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday.
As reported, the airlines that are part of Lufthansa Group intend to increase the number of flights to Kyiv in the summer navigation of 2018. Lufthansa offered six additional flights a week from Frankfurt to Kyiv from March 25, 2018, and Swiss airlines planned to return to work on the Ukrainian route to Zurich with four flights a week on March 26, 2018.
PJSC ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih (Dnipropetrovsk region) in 2017 received a net profit of UAH 5.062 billion, while in 2016 it amounted to UAH 2.704 billion. According to the company’s announcement of an annual shareholders’ meeting scheduled for April 26, retained earnings by the end of the year amounted to UAH 32.980 billion.
Over the past year, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih increased current liabilities by 23.1%, to UAH 17.044 billion, but reduced long-term liabilities by 2.1%, to UAH 6.791 billion. At the same time, the plant increased debtor indebtedness by 34.7%, to UAH 22.928 billion.
The assets of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih in 2017 increased by 10%, to UAH 89.063 billion, in particular fixed assets by 1.4%, to UAH 47.134 billion.
The shareholders intend to spend net profit received in 2017 on the development of production, dividends won’t be accrued and paid.
ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih is the largest producer of steel products in Ukraine. It specializes in production of long products, in particular, fittings and wire rod.
Ukraine in February 2018 increased steel production by 11.2% compared to the same period in 2017, to 1.9 million tonnes, ranking 12th in the rating of 64 countries, the world’s major steel producers, compiled by the World Steel Association (Worldsteel). In February, the growth of steel making in half of the top ten countries was recorded.
The top ten countries in terms of steel production in February were China (64.930 million tonnes, an increase of 5.9%), India (8.434 million tonnes, an increase of 3.4%), Japan (8.296 million tonnes, a drop of 0.5%), the United States (6.446 million tonnes, an increase of 0.4%), South Korea (5.415 million tonnes, a decrease of 2.1%), Russia (5.150 million tonnes, a fall of 2.1%), Germany (3.340 million tonnes, a 3.2% decrease), Turkey (2.998 million tonnes, an increase of 8.7%), Brazil (2.714 million tonnes, a 5.5% increase), and Iran (2.120 million tonnes, an increase of 48.6%).
They are followed by Italy (2.093 million tonnes, an increase of 4.5%), Ukraine (1.9 million tonnes, an increase of 11.2%), and Taiwan (1.810 million tonnes, a fall of 2%).
In general, in February 64 countries produced 131.791 million tonnes of steel, which is 3.5% more than in February 2017.
The analysis of weather information and gardeners’ reports on the situation in the gardens make it possible to hope for a record high apple harvest, as well as the yield of many other types of fruits and berries in Ukraine in 2018, the Ukrainian Horticultural Association has said. According to a preliminary forecast of the association, the anomalously cold and snowy March of the current year with a high probability will delay the flowering of the gardens, which will allow reducing the likelihood of losses from spring frosts, while the relatively stable climatic conditions of the winter allowed gardeners to almost completely prevent damage and depletion of trees.
The experts expect the total harvest in 2018 to increase, as a significant number of young gardens will begin to bear fruit.
The union said the EU expects a record high apple harvest after last year’s frosts sharply reduced productivity in the gardens. Accordingly, competition in the European apple market will intensify, which will affect prices.
“It’s worth expecting a sharp decline in prices in the apple market in Ukraine. Especially it will be difficult for producers who grow apples of not very popular varieties and low quality. It is likely that such apples will be sold at the same price as industrial ones. At the same time, quality apples of prospective varieties will be actively exported, so exporting producers can even increase their revenue compared to the 2017/2018 season. Quality apples will be sold in the domestic market at a 30-50% lower price than in the previous season,” the association notes.
State-owned enterprise (SOE) SpetsTechnoExport performed foreign-economic defense contracts worth $120 million in 2017, and 80% of the deals were related to the export of modern weapons and equipment, the company’s press service has reported.
According to the report, 10% of export contracts relate to R&D in Ukraine in order to create innovative defense technologies for foreign partners purposes.
The press service said that in the past years the half of export turnover of the SpetsTechnoExport is the export of defense products to India. The company fulfilled export contracts with India for the total amount of $65 million, and a year earlier it completed the implementation of the bulk of the multi-year contract for upgrading An-32 aircraft for Indian Air Force worth $400 million.
During 2017, SpetsTechnoExport significantly intensified cooperation with Indonesia, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia, the company said.
The press service said that in 2017 SpetsTechnoExport was registered at the NATO Suppliers Base (NSPA) that opened up new opportunities for expanding cooperation with Western partners. The company became the first Ukrainian company to win an international public tender under the GPA rules, according to which SpetsTechnoExport will supply components to T-72 tanks to one of the EU countries.
The company said that Import contracts for the needs of Ukrainian law enforcement agencies continue to be deployed in priority regime. Supply of small arms and ammunition, sights and night vision devices, radio communication systems, systems of individual protection were the main areas of import activity of SpetsTechnoExport in 2017.
The press service told Interfax-Ukraine that at present, the SpetsTechnoExport’s portfolio of orders is estimated at some $500 million. Today the enterprise is involved in defense cooperation with customers from over 30 countries.
SpetsTechnoExport is among Ukraine’s leading exporters of weapons and special purpose equipment. Since December 2010, it has been part of the Ukroboronprom state concern.
