Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

UKRAINE FULLY USES EU QUOTAS FOR EIGHT COMMODITY GROUPS IN 2015

KYIV. Jan 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine fully used the European Union’s tariff quotas for the supply of maize, wheat, poultry, honey, oats, grape and apple juice, processed tomatoes, barley groats, and flour in 2015, the Ukrainian Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food has reported.

What is more, the sugar quota was used by 99%, that of malt and wheat gluten by 73%, starch by 9.6%, ethanol by 4.5%, garlic by 8.8%, and barley by 77.7%.

As reported, Ukraine is allowed to supply 36 groups of commodities to the EU on a duty-free basis within the quotas approved under the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement.

Namely, the beef quota is set at 12,000 tonnes, that of milk, yoghurt, fermented milk products at 8,000 tonnes, milk powder at 1,500 tonnes, creamery butter at 1,500 tonnes, egg products at 1,500 tonnes, eggs at 3,000 tonnes, and pork at 40,000 tonnes.

Tariff quotas within the EU’s autonomous trade preferences are set at 950,000 tonnes for wheat, 250,000 tonnes for barley, 400,000 tonnes for maize, 20,00 tonnes for sugar, 5,000 tonnes for honey,10,000 tonnes for, processed tomatoes, 10,000 tonnes for grape and apple juice, 4,000 tonnes for oats, and 500 tonnes for garlic.

CYPRIOT FUNEMI LIMITED TO PURCHASE 100% OF RENAISSANCE COMPANY

KYIV. Jan 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Cypriot company Funemi Limited intends to acquire 100% of shares in PJSC Renaissance (Brovary, Kyiv region), part of NEST group of companies (Kyiv).

According to a company report in the information disclosure system of the National Commission on Securities and the Stock Market, Funemi Limited plans to acquire 322 million common registered shares in PJSC Renaissance.

As indicated in the report, as of January 12, 2016 Funemi Limited did not hold shares of PJSC Renaissance.

PJSC Renaissance was created in 2003. Its core business is leasing and operating own or rented real estate.

As of January 19, 2015, 100% of the charter capital or 322 million ordinary registered shares of the company with a nominal value of UAH 0.1 belonged to an individual. The director general of the company is Mykola Shnipko.

ISRAEL HOPES TO SIGN FREE TRADE AREA AGREEMENT WITH UKRAINE BEFORE YEAR-END – AMBASSADOR

KYIV. Jan 20 (Interfax) – Israeli Ambassador to Kyiv Eliav Belotserkovsky is hopeful that Ukraine and Israel will sign a free trade area agreement before the end of 2016.

“I hope that we will be able to sign a free trade area agreement with Ukraine before the end of the year,” he said at a press conference in Kyiv on Tuesday.

The two countries’ mutual trade stood at $800 million, a decline as compared to the previous period, he said. Israeli exports to Ukraine dropped, while Ukraine’s exports to the Israeli market grew 4% to some $600 million-$650 million.

At the end of 2015, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, speaking after his talks with the Israeli leadership, announced the two countries’ plans to sign a free trade area agreement in the first half of 2016.

UKRAINE’S FM KLIMKIN, EU TRADE COMMISSIONER MALMSTROM AGREE TO COORDINATE EFFORTS TO FACILITATE BUSINESS CONTACTS WITHIN DCFTA

KYIV. Jan 19 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klimkin and EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom met in Brussels on Monday to discuss prospects for facilitation of the economic impact of the implementation of a deep and comprehensive free trade area (DCFTA) between Ukraine and the EU.

“The parties welcomed the introduction the deep and comprehensive free trade area as of January 1, 2016, and confirmed the plans to coordinate efforts to ensure tangible positive results both for businesses and for consumers in Ukraine and the EU within the shortest time possible,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s press service reported after the Klimkin-Malmstrom meeting on Monday.

The sides paid special attention to the impact of the discriminatory measures introduced by Russia to limit Ukrainian imports onto the Russian market and Ukrainian transit shipments through Russian territory to third countries’ markets.

“Klimkin suggested considering a package of joint measures aimed at strengthening the economic impact of the DCFTA implementation by promoting investment and business contacts between Ukraine and the EU, and the EU’s assistance in developing Ukraine’s export potential, further liberalization of access of certain categories of Ukrainian exports to the EU market, and the coordination of measures to be taken by Ukraine and the EU within the WTO,” the report said.

The parties also agreed to coordinate joint efforts in that direction.

DTEK RESUMES COAL SHIPMENTS FROM LVIV-VOLYN BASIN

KYIV. Jan 19 (Interfax-Ukraine) – DTEK on January 16 resumed shipments from companies developing Lviv-Volyn coal basin in Ukraine’s northwest, head of DTEK Energy’s department for external communications Iryna Miliutina said.

“The shipments have resumed at the request and against guarantees from the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry. At the same time, the State Coal Company hasn’t submitted the documents needed to formalize the transaction, therefore the coal is sent to warehouses of DTEK Energy’s thermal power plant for storage,” she wrote on Facebook.

In her words, the ministry guarantees that the issue will be settled within the next few days. “All contracts and specifications needed for the supply of Lviv-Volyn coal to Zakhidenergo’s thermal power plants will be agreed and signed by Centrenergo and the State Coal Company by the end of the current week. This will let it possible to formalize coal shipments to DTEK Zakhidenergo’s thermal power plant and resume supplies of DTEK Energy’s coal to Centrenergo’s thermal power plants,” she said.

DTEK earlier reported that in 2015 its thermal power plants bought over 580,000 tonnes of coal from state-run coal mines, including over 450,000 tonnes of Lviv-Volyn coal.

DAVOS UKRAINIAN BREAKFAST WILL BRING TOGETHER WORLD LEADERS ON JAN 22

KYIV. Jan 19 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Victor Pinchuk Foundation and EastOne International Investment Advisory Group will host the Ukrainian Breakfast, a traditional private event organized at the occasion of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos (Switzerland) on January 22.

“This year, the speakers will discuss the topic ‘Changing World. Changed Ukraine?’: In a world dominated by multiple crises, where is Ukraine’s place? And are reforms in Ukraine reaching a critical mass that leads to real and irreversible change?,” reads a report from the organizers on Tuesday.

According to the report, among the speakers will be Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine Aivaras Abromavicius; President of the European Commission (2004-2014) Jose Manuel Barroso; Prime Minister of Sweden (1991-1994) and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden (2006-2014) Carl Bildt; Founder of Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson; Minister of International Trade of Canada Chrystia Freeland, and Natalie Jaresko, Finance Minister of Ukraine.

Niall Ferguson, Professor of History at Harvard University, will moderate the discussion.

The Davos Ukrainian Lunch (Davos Ukrainian Breakfast in 2015 and 2016) is a private event dedicated to Ukraine, held annually in Davos at the occasion of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum. It gives world leaders an opportunity to learn about and discuss Ukraine’s political and economic situation and challenges.

This year the International Renaissance Foundation, Horizon Capital and Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF) will be the partners of the event.