The development and popularization of squash in Ukraine is promising, CEO of the World Squash Federation Andrew Shelley has stated.
“There are good squash courts in Ukraine and new ones are coming in. Your young squash federation is doing a good job, therefore you have everything. Squash in Ukraine is moving forward,” he said during his visit to Ukraine.
Shelley noted squash does not require large financial resources.
“This is a great sport, and the more people try to play it, the more will be involved,” he said.
Multiple world squash champion Ramy Ashour and six-time European champion Camille Serme visited Ukraine within the worldwide program for squash development “Ambassador WSF 2018” on June 23-24.
Coach and referee seminars, demonstration matches, thematic conferences, the sparring and training of the Ukrainian men’s and women’s squash teams with the leading world players, trainings for children from the children’s squash academy were held in Kyiv within the framework of this program.
“More than 20 million people play squash all over the world. In Ukraine their number amounts to thousands. We have room for improvement, and we really are developing. Squash is appreciated as an entertaining sport and an excellent relaxation for amateur sportsmen. We are grateful to the World Squash Federation for including our country in the program of squash popularization and teamwork,” the program coordinator, Vice President of the Ukrainian Squash Federation Maksim Urakin said.
Squash is a sport with a ball and a racket played indoors. The game is conducted by special rackets on a court surrounded by walls from four sides. In 2003 the Forbes magazine recognized squash as one of the most “healthy sports” both in terms of injury rate and the most energy-consuming sport in the world by the number of calories burned. More than 20 million people around the world play squash.
photo by Larisa Okhtienko
Ukrainian enterprises in January-May 2018 boosted rolled steel consumption by 10.9% year-over-year, to 1.842 million tonnes (1.661 million tonnes in January-May 2017). In January-May 2018, some 545,800 tonnes of rolled products were imported, which was 29.6% of domestic consumption, the Ukrmetprom Association has said.
In the same period of 2017, imports of rolled steel totaled 453,000 tonnes (27.3%).
“Thus, the share of the import component grew by 20.5% in the five months of 2018 amid an increase in the consumption of rolled metal in the domestic market by 10.9% compared to January-May 2017,” the association said in a press release.
Bars and rods are still prevalent the structure of the imports in the five months compared to flat-rolled products in contrast to the same period in 2017: the share of flat-rolled goods in January-May-2017 was 61.8% versus 47.2% the same period of 2018, while the share of bars and rods was 37% and 49.6%, respectively.
“First and foremost, this is due to the loss of PJSC Yenakiyeve Metallurgical Plant [in Russian-occupied Donbas], and the deficit is offset by imports,” the press release said.
Ukrainian metal companies produced 7.72 million tonnes of rolled metal in the five months of 2018 (105% compared to the same period in 2017, taking into account production in occupied Donbas in January-February-2017, or 111% without taking that territory into account), Ukrmetprom said. Of the output, about 6.43 million tonnes, or 83.2%, was exported, according to the State enterprise Information-Analytic Agency (StateAnalitInform). This roughly corresponds to the same period in 2017, when the share of exports was 83.6% (6.17 million tonnes with total rolled metal production being 7.39 million tonnes).
The share of semi-finished products in export shipments was 42.2%, which also corresponds to the period January-May 2017 (42.1%). The share of flat products (34% and 33.4%, respectively) and bars and rods (23.8% and 24.5%, respectively) are comparable with the same period of 2017.
The main export markets for Ukrainian steel products in January-May 2018, according to StateAnalitInform, were the countries of the European Union (34.8%), Africa (15.8%), other European countries, including Turkey (13.1% ), as well as countries in the Middle East (11.4%).
The main importers of metal products in the five months of 2018 were the CIS (59.6%), Asia (19.1%) and the EU’s 28 member states (15.9%).
The lifecell mobile communications operator on July 1, 2018 is to launch high-speed mobile Internet using 4.5G technology (LTE Advanced Pro) in the 1800 MHz band in 232 cities and towns of Ukraine.
“Our license becomes effective on July 1. We are ready to provide 4.5G communications services in in 232 cities and towns of Ukraine,” Director of the mobile lifecell network Mahmut Ünsal Erüreten said at a press conference in Kyiv on Tuesday, adding that the company intends by the end of the year to cover 15 million of the country’s population with this service.
According to him, the company is putting into operation new towers to provide these services.
“The volume of transmitted information will be more powerful, these stations were built by our team of engineers,” he added.
CEO of lifecell Ismet Yazici, this communication standard will be presented in 17 regions of Ukraine.
According to Erüreten, the company’s investments in the launch of 4.5G amounted to $45 million. By the end of the year, another $40 million is planned to be invested.
Synchronously with the launch of the new standard of Internet services, the company in collaboration with General Mobile will bring two smartphones to the market.
“I am very pleased that we are entering the Ukrainian market jointly with lifecell. In 33 countries we were able to introduce the 3G era together,” Board Chairman of General Mobile Sebahattin Yaman said.
He said that General Mobile is entering the Ukrainian market exclusively with lifecell.
Three quarters (76%) of respondents surveyed by Rating Sociological Group say the country is headed in the wrong direction. According to the results of the study, which was presented on Tuesday at the press center of the Kyiv-based Interfax-Ukraine news agency, 13% of respondents believe that things are going in the right direction in the country, and 11% had difficulty answering the question.
At the same time, residents of the central and western regions express relatively less pessimism, while attitudes were more critical in Ukraine’s southern regions.
Almost two-thirds (60%) of the Ukrainians interviewed spoke about the worsening economic situation of their families over the past six months, another 30% said that there are no changes, and only 8% said that their families have improved their economic situation over the period.
The war in eastern Ukraine remains the most important state problem in the eyes of the majority of citizens (78%). Only 55% of those polled complained about bribery and corruption as a nation-wide problem
More than half of respondents are personally concerned about the increase in prices and tariffs, as well as the low level of salaries and pensions. Issues of war in the east, low level of medical services and a lack of good jobs are personal problems for every fifth person.
The survey was conducted on June 14-24, 2018 among 2,500 Ukrainian citizens aged 18 and older through a formalized interview (face-to-face). The sample is representative of age, sex, region, and type of settlement. The margin of error of the survey does not exceed 2%
Representatives of large associations of industrial and agroindusitral enterprises of Ukraine have asked the Ukrainian prime minister to solve the problem in the sphere of transportation by rail, in particular, the shortage of gondola cars and rolling stock. The request is outlined in an address posted on the website of the Ukrcement association
“Rail transport provides for about 60% of the total volume of cargo transportation in Ukraine. To ensure efficient operation of enterprises of the leading sectors of the economy of our state, it is the freight transportation by rail that is critical. We are only approaching the period of the peak transportation, and the enterprises are already experiencing an acute shortage of gondola cars. These all restrains development of metallurgical, chemical, cement and agrarian sectors, “the associations said.
The authors of the document said that industrialists and agrarians do not receive the ordered cars in due time and do not have access to those for which they have already paid the rent. The cars are staying idle at cross rail stations, and enterprises continue incurring losses and disrupting the implementation of contracts.
In addition, the associations asked the prime minister to invite representatives of the associations of industrial enterprises and the agroindustrial complex to the government meeting, where the report of the board chairman of PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia will be heard.
The letter was signed by the Federation of Metallurgists of Ukraine, the association of enterprises Ukrmetallurgprom, the Ukrainian Grain Association, the Ukrainian Chemists Union, the Ukrainian Association of Ferroalloys Producers and the Association of Cement Manufacturers Ukrcement.
AGRARIAN, GONDOLA CARS, GOVERNMENT, INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATIONS, SHORTAGE
If presidential elections in Ukraine were held in the middle of June 2018, Batkivschyna Party leader Yulia Tymoshenko would receive the most votes, followed by Civil Position Party leader Anatoliy Hrytsenko and Opposition Bloc leader Yuriy Boiko, according to the results of a poll conducted by the Rating Sociological Group.
Some 16% of respondents said they would vote for Tymoshenko, 11.7% for Hrytsenko and 10.5% for Boiko, according to poll results, according to which showman Volodymyr Zelensky would receive 9.3%, with Radical Party leader Oleh Liashko, musician Sviatoslav Vakarchuk and acting Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko receiving 8.6%.
Some 52% of those polled said they would not vote for Poroshenko under any circumstances, with 30% saying the same of ex-Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. Liashko’s anti-rating was 23.8%, followed by Boiko with 23% and Tymoshenko with 20.8%.
Some 66% of those polled said they thought the presidential elections would not be free and fair, with only 12% believing the opposite. Some 22% had difficulty answering the question. Almost 64% favored punishing candidates who will give “material assistance” to people in exchange for votes, while 23% are not against receiving “material assistance.”
The survey was carried by means of face-to-face interviews from June 14 to June 24, 2018. Some 2,500 Ukrainian citizens over the age of 18 comprising a representative sample by sex, region and type of residence took part in the survey, which has a margin of error of no more than 2%.
BOIKO, CANDIDATE SURVEY, HRYTSENKO, POROSHENKO, YULIA TYMOSHENKO
