Ukrainian companies increased exports of ferrous scrap by 62.4% year-on-year in January-November this year, up to 261,578 thousand tons from 161,025 thousand tons.
According to the statistics released by the State Customs Service on Monday, 34.608 thousand tons of scrap were exported in November, 24.549 thousand tons in October, 24.767 thousand tons in September, and 28.767 thousand tons in August. tons, in August – 28,425 thousand tons, in July – 24,702 thousand tons, in June – 22,161 thousand tons, in May – 14,952 thousand tons, in April – 26,153 thousand tons, in March – 20,907 thousand tons, in February – 23,194 thousand tons, in January – 17,160 thousand tons.
In monetary terms, scrap exports increased by 76.8% to $82.056 million from $46.406 million.
In January-November, Ukraine exported scrap mainly to Poland (82.56%), Greece (12.58%) and Germany (3.49%).
For the eleven months of the year, the country imported 100 tons of scrap metal for $108 thousand, while in January-November 2023, 987 tons were imported for $383 thousand. This year’s imports were carried out mainly from Turkey (65.74% in monetary terms), the British Virgin Islands (16.67%) and Panama (6.48%).
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine’s scrap collecting enterprise increased scrap exports from the country by 3.4 times compared to the previous year – up to 182,485 thousand tons from 53,557 thousand tons. In monetary terms, exports increased 2.74 times to $52.723 million from $19.271 million.
Earlier, Ukrmetallurgprom President Oleksandr Kalenkov stated in a column on the Interfax-Ukraine website that scrap is exported through the European Union, which has a preferential export duty of EUR3 per ton, and from there the raw materials are redirected to real customers. He noted that exporting raw materials directly to customers would cost EUR180 in export duties, and the Ukrainian budget has already lost UAH 350 million.
The head of Ukrmetallurgprom called for a temporary ban on the export of ferrous scrap to provide steelmakers with strategically important raw materials in the face of the ongoing war. He also clarified that a ton of scrap processed into steel brings in 10 times more to the budget than the EU export duty, which is about $300 per ton.
In 2022, Ukraine reduced exports of ferrous scrap by 11.5 times compared to the previous year, to 53,557 thousand tons, and in monetary terms, it decreased by 12.4 times, to $19.271 million.
Demand for Ukrainian wheat remains high, in particular from Spain, where last week agreements were concluded for the supply of feed wheat at a price of $237-238 per ton with delivery in January, according to the analytical cooperative “Pusk”, established within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Rada.
Analysts noted that the world markets are facing competition from Russian wheat, which dominates the markets of Algeria, Tunisia and the Middle East due to its aggressive pricing policy. However, the situation, according to experts, may change in 2025.
“It is expected that from February to June 2025, the Russian Federation will be able to export only 11 million tons due to the introduction of an export quota. This is significantly less than in the previous season, when the quota was 28-29 million tons. An additional factor of influence is the unsatisfactory condition of 30% of winter crops in Russia. We can expect a gradual increase in wheat prices already in December-January, which may amount to $20-25 per ton,” – predicted in ‘Pusk’.
Analysts added that on the domestic market of Ukraine, wheat of 2-3 class remains the main commodity for processors, while exporters are offered feed grain.
Canadian mining company Black Iron Inc. with assets in Ukraine has started the active process of obtaining permits for iron ore mining within the framework of the implementation of the new Shimanovskiy iron ore project in Kryvyi Rih. According to the materials available to Interfax-Ukraine, a subsidiary of Shimanovskoye Steel LLC has applied for a permit for open-pit iron ore mining in the northern part of the Shimanovskoye open pit.
It is planned that the total volume of overburden ore will be 5.13 million cubic meters, including 1.31 million cubic meters of ore, and the open pit will be 660 meters by 390 meters and 80 meters deep. It is also expected to produce 4.5 million tons of ore per year during year-round operation.
As reported, Black Iron Inc. continues to advance the Shimanovskoye iron ore project, having prioritized it by concluding an investment agreement with the country’s government. The main issue remains the obtaining of a land plot under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense. Discussions with the Ministry of Defense have led to an agreement on the preliminary amount of money that Black Iron will have to pay as compensation for obtaining this land for its use.
The Company has also stated that it is considering new potential projects.
In October 2010, Black Iron acquired the Cypriot subsidiary of Geo-Alliance Ore East Limited, along with licenses, from the EastOne investment group of Ukrainian businessman Victor Pinchuk for $13 million, then renaming it BKI Cyprus. Its main assets are 99% in Shimanovskoye Steel LLC and Zelenovskoye Steel LLC (both in Dnipro).
In July 2013, after a number of problems with the implementation of the project, Black Iron Inc. announced an agreement with Ukraine’s largest mining and metallurgical group Metinvest to develop its iron ore assets. Metinvest B.V. paid Black Iron Inc.$20 million and acquired a 49% stake in BKI Cyprus. However, Metinvest later withdrew from the project.
The Shimanovskoye iron ore deposit is surrounded by five other operating mining operations, including ArcelorMittal’s iron ore complex. Existing infrastructure, including access to power, rail and port facilities, Black Iron believes will allow the project to ramp up to production quickly.
According to the presentation dated May 2021, the expected capital investment for the launch of the first phase is estimated at $452 million, the second – $364 million. The project envisaged the construction of a plant for the production of premium iron ore raw materials with an iron content of over 68% with a capacity of 4 million tons per year in the first phase and 8 million tons per year in the second.
LLC Shimanovskoe Steel was registered in June 2007. Black Iron (Cyprus) owns 100% of Shimanovskoye Steel. The authorized capital is UAH 193 mln 677,830 th.
AllSeeds Group, one of Ukraine’s largest producers of sunflower oil and meal, has stopped buying raw materials for processing and finished products for export due to delays of ships in ports during the implementation of a new system of export security, the head of the group Vyacheslav Petrishche said on Facebook.
He recalled that on the initiative of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy from December 1 began to operate the export security regime to operations for the export of certain types of agro-commodities, which provides a new procedure for customs clearance of export cargoes.
“Well a good thing it seems. Allegedly to combat the shadow market and return currency to the country. I am personally unequivocally in favor of it. I have always been, am and will be against the shadow market. But can it be done not to the delight of the enemy during the bombings, but for the good of the motherland? (…) If you introduce a new procedure, can it be tested first? Will it work at all?” – wrote Petrishche.
According to his information, the authorities issued permits for loading agro-products with all necessary checks on November 29 (before the introduction of the new system – IF-U). Large ships entered Odessa seaports, carried out loading for several days and waited a long time for registration.
“Did you put all this goodness under the berths on purpose for inspection? So that the enemy could take better aim???? (…) during the war I would call it sabotage, you can’t think of anything else. (…) Well, let these boats go (the law has no retroactive effect) and do not launch new ones (and they are already waiting) until exporters submit export documents properly executed according to the new procedure”, – said the head of the AllSeeds group of companies.
Petrische drew attention to the growing losses of companies due to ship demurrage and pointed to safety problems during the downtime in the transition period when implementing the new agro-export system.
“Our company has stopped buying raw materials for processing and finished products for export. It is better to let people go home and sit with their money than to take the risk that if you are not the enemy, you will be “sheltered” by your own people. I recommend it to everyone,” Petrishche emphasized.
He reminded the head of the parliamentary finance committee, Daniil Hetmantsev, that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and recommended him to “ruin the whole economy” on his own.
“God grant him health, and God grant the country to survive it! (…) It’s a shame for the State,” summarized the head of the AllSeeds group of companies.
Allseeds Group is one of the five largest Ukrainian producers and exporters of vegetable oils and meal. It owns an oilseed processing plant with a capacity of 2200 MT per day of sunflower seeds (or 1500 MT per day of rapeseed or 1 day of soybeans), which is located in the port “Yuzhny” (Odessa region).
Allseeds also provides transshipment services for vegetable oils and oilseed meal at its terminals in Yuzhny. The capacity for simultaneous storage of vegetable oils is more than 100 thousand tons, and of oil meal – 30 thousand tons.
After raising the official hryvnia exchange rate by 4 kopecks on Thursday, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) strengthened it by another 5 kopecks on Friday to 41.6070 UAH/$1, according to the regulator’s website.
“The foreign exchange market of Ukraine is experiencing an increase in the currency deficit caused by high demand in both cash and non-cash segments. The National Bank of Ukraine stabilizes the market with interventions that are not able to fully satisfy the demand for currency, but at the same time achieve the goal of stabilizing the market, which prevents abrupt dynamics and allows to maintain a smooth devaluation trend,” analysts of KIT Group state in the review and forecast of the foreign exchange market.
According to them, the increase in demand for foreign currency in both segments of the foreign exchange market is typical for the beginning of the month and the end of the year.
The analysts also note that the spread between the buying and selling rates of the euro and the US dollar has increased in recent weeks.
“This indicates the desire of currency market operators to capitalize on the increased demand for cash currency among the population, and the widening of the difference between the purchase and sale rates allows them to compensate for their own risks amid a poorly predictable exchange rate situation,” they explain.
At the same time, KIT Group believes that statements by Ukraine’s international partners regarding further funding from frozen natural resources, infrastructure support and economic stimulus projects do not give rise to pessimistic exchange rate forecasts.
According to their expectations, in the short term, the hryvnia exchange rate against the dollar will remain in the range of 41.7-42 UAH/$1, with a tendency to gravitate towards 42.5 UAH/$1. “Quotations close to 42 UAH/$1 were already recorded in early December, which is in line with our exchange rate expectations for the end of this year. At the same time, seasonal factors, such as increased demand for foreign currency at the end of the year, may cause a slight short-term surge to 42.5 UAH/$1,”KIT Group” forecasts.
However, at the same time, recent changes in tax policy may increase the tax burden on deposit income, which could stimulate additional demand for foreign currency and the flow of foreign currency savings from the banking system into cash, thereby putting pressure on the hryvnia exchange rate.
The NBU set the reference rate at 12:00 on Friday at 41.5778 UAH/$1, compared to 41.6915 UAH/$1 a day earlier.
The US dollar on the cash market on Friday rose by 4 kopecks to 41.84 UAH/$1 when buying, and by 5 kopecks to 41.90 UAH/$1 when selling.
Overall, since the beginning of 2024, the dollar has risen by 9.5%, or UAH 3.60, at the official exchange rate, and by 13.8%, or UAH 5.03, since the National Bank switched to a managed flexibility regime on October 3, 2023.
The average annual exchange rate is set at 40.7 UAH/$1 in the budget for 2024, and 42.1 UAH/$1 at the end of this year.
As reported, the official hryvnia exchange rate fell by 0.9%, or 37 kopecks, over the past month.
At the same time, Ukraine’s international reserves in November increased by $3.344 billion, or 9.1%, and as of December 1, 2024, according to preliminary data from the central bank, amounted to $39.925 billion, while net international reserves (NIR) increased by $3.5 billion, or 15.6%, to $25 billion 939 million.
The NBU’s net sale of foreign currency on the interbank market last week increased to $785.4 million, compared to $708.5 million a week earlier.
Source: https://ru.interfax.com.ua/news/projects/1033645.html
Slovakia will hold a series of talks starting next week to secure gas supplies from Russia after its current transit contract, which involves Ukraine, expires at the end of this year, Reuters reported on Friday, citing government officials.
“In the coming days, in particular during the Christmas holidays, you can witness extremely intense negotiations at different levels and in different countries, which will begin next week,” Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said at a press conference.
Denisa Sakova, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Slovakia, said that the talks would involve the European Commission, Ukraine and EU member states.
Fico said that he sought to ensure the continuation of supplies from the east to avoid additional fees for gas transit from other directions. “We see no reason to pay more for gas than necessary for geopolitical reasons… I believe that even if there is a short-term interruption of supplies from the east, we have enough reserves to find a common solution for several EU countries, and we will keep gas transit through Slovakia, as well as gas transit through Ukraine,” he said.
Reuters notes that Slovak officials have been looking for alternative gas transit schemes through Ukraine that would not require a direct agreement between Ukraine and Russia, but have not reached any agreement.
Slovakia reportedly has a long-term contract with Russia’s Gazprom and would like to keep importing Russian gas through Ukraine, but it will end at the end of 2024, as Ukraine does not plan to extend the transit contract with Gazprom.
Earlier, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that Hungary and Bulgaria had found a legal and financial solution acceptable to the parties to continue the transit of Russian gas through their countries in the face of US sanctions against Gazprombank.
Hungary receives Russian gas through the Turkish Stream pipeline from Russia to Turkey and then transits through Bulgaria to Hungary. Hungary has received the bulk of its gas consumption through this route – this year, more than 7 billion cubic meters.
At the same time, Bloomberg, citing the Bulgarian Ministry of Energy, reports that “only a ‘solution’ to the problem was discussed, which would include Hungary and allow Bulgaria to continue receiving transit fees after the arrival of Russian gas.” Bulgaria has previously warned that it may stop transiting Russian gas to Central Europe if Gazprom does not find a payment solution, the agency reminds.
