The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) increased sales of foreign currency on the interbank market last week by $98.4 million, or 18%, to $643.6 million, according to the regulator’s statistics on its website.
According to the statistics, the central bank has not bought any foreign currency over the past two weeks.
Last week, the National Bank bought the most foreign currency since the beginning of March, but it is still less than in February this year and roughly equal to the amount of foreign currency purchased in the same week in March last year.
Data released by the regulator during this time show that the negative balance between the volume of foreign currency purchases by households and the volume of foreign currency sales narrowed last week from $26.89 million on Monday to $20.24 on Thursday.
The official hryvnia exchange rate weakened by 2 kopecks to 41.5277 UAH/$1 over the week.
The same was the case on the cash market, with a narrow spread of 41.46-41.56 UAH/$1.
‘Since the beginning of March, the Ukrainian foreign exchange market has undergone significant changes in the dynamics of the dollar. While in February the dollar was gradually strengthening, in early March it began to decline, followed by a gradual recovery after 10 March,’ analysts of the currency exchange market operator KYT Group commented on the market situation in their March review.
According to them, the Ukrainian cash FX market was affected by a decline in demand for the dollar following a large-scale import of cash currency in February: according to the NBU, $1.316 billion in cash dollars and the equivalent of $450 million in euros were imported into Ukraine.
The NBU’s interventions help to smooth out exchange rate volatility and maintain a controlled situation on the market, but the increase in budget spending in March traditionally creates additional demand for foreign currency, which may affect the correction of the hryvnia exchange rate, KYT Group experts added. They expect that in the short term, over the next 1-3 weeks, the dollar is likely to remain in the range of UAH 41.30-42.30/$1.
As reported, the NBU’s net interventions in February fell to $3bn from $3.75bn in January.
In February 2025, Ukrainians’ purchases of foreign currency exceeded sales by $0.95bn, which is also down from $1.48bn in January this year.
Ukraine’s international reserves as of 1 March 2025, according to preliminary data, amounted to $40.15 billion, which is 6.7%, or $2.86 billion, less than a month ago.
The Cabinet of Ministers has set the average annual rate of the official hryvnia/US dollar exchange rate in the 2025 state budget at 45 UAH/$1.
https://interfax.com.ua/news/economic/1058312.html
Rice prices fell after India lifted the last of its existing restrictions on rice exports.
The price per ton of benchmark white Thai rice, which was $669 in January 2024, had fallen to $405 by last week, the Financial Times said. The decision to lift the restrictions was prompted by India’s desire to boost agricultural and food exports to boost farmers’ incomes amid a general economic slowdown in the country.
According to Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, the plan is to increase shipments to $100 billion by 2030 from $48.15 billion in 2023-2024.
“Last year, about $50 billion worth of products were exported from India,” the minister had said earlier. – I hope to see a triple-digit figure, the $100 billion mark.”
Export restrictions were imposed in the country in 2022. As a result of the decision, the price of white Thai rice jumped to its highest since 2008. India began easing the restrictive measures in September last year. India’s rice exports, which stood at 14 million tons in 2023, could reach a record 21.5 million tons between September 2024 and October 2025, according to S&P Global estimates.
The return of Indian rice will negatively impact exporters from Pakistan, which has gained market shares in Indonesia and East Africa amid declining supplies from India. The US Department of Agriculture estimates rice exports from Pakistan for the 12 months to May 2025 at just 5.8 million tons, down 11.4% from the same period a year earlier.
India is a leading supplier of milled rice, which is in high demand in African countries. According to the International Food Policy Research Institute, Indian supplies accounted for more than 60% of rice imports of 17 African countries and more than 80% of imports of nine, including Somalia, in 2022.
In 2024, the owner of the online medical goods ordering service tabletki.ua, MTPK LLC (Kyiv), increased its net profit by 1.96 times compared to 2023 – up to UAH 598.228 million.
This is evidenced by the data of the opendata.bot system.
According to the system, the company’s revenue increased by 1.95 times to UAH 715.433 million.
As reported, in February, Kyivstar, the largest mobile operator, applied to the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) with a second application for the purchase of MTPC LLC. Kyivstar filed its first application for the acquisition of MTPC in November 2024, but on November 29, the Committee returned it as not meeting the requirements of the regulation on the procedure for reviewing applications and cases on the concentration of business entities.
Tabletki.ua is a website and app that allows you to find and book medicines and pharmaceuticals at a particular pharmacy.
According to the service, by the end of 2023, the service had more than 10 million users and more than 12 thousand partner pharmacies.
The owners of MTPK LLC are Oleksandr, Natalia and Yevhen Muravschyk (23%, 23% and 10%, respectively), Yuriy Savin (20%), Volodymyr Osmachko (15%) and Vadym Rohatynskyi (9%).
For the first time in the history of Central Asia, the 150th anniversary assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union will be held in Tashkent.
This event will be held on April 5-9, 2025 at the Congress Hall in Tashkent City. About 2,000 delegates from 180 countries, 15 observer states, and more than 25 international and inter-parliamentary organizations are expected to attend.
The main theme of the upcoming Assembly will be “Parliamentary Movement for Social Development and Justice”. The Assembly will discuss issues such as poverty reduction, creation of decent working conditions, support for social inclusion, and increased participation of vulnerable groups in decision-making.
The Assembly will result in the adoption of IPU resolutions and the Tashkent Declaration.
In 2024, the German residential real estate market faced a number of challenges, including falling prices, slowing construction and rising borrowing costs. Here are the key trends and forecasts for 2025, focusing on the country’s largest cities.
Decline in housing prices
In the first half of 2024, the average asking prices for new and existing apartments decreased by about 3.6% compared to the same period in 2023. This decline is less pronounced than in previous periods, when the drop reached 7.3% and 7.4%, respectively. The largest annual decline was recorded in Frankfurt am Main – by 6.5%, while in Hamburg the decline was only 0.6%.
The situation in major cities
Munich: The most expensive city in Germany with an average price of about 11,000 euros per square meter. In 2024, there was a 5.2% decline in prices for new buildings.
Berlin: The average housing price was around 7,920 euros per square meter.
Hamburg: A 5% decline in new construction prices, which is one of the smallest declines among major cities.
Frankfurt am Main: The largest year-on-year price decline of 6.5%.
Düsseldorf and Leipzig: On the contrary, these cities recorded an increase in prices for new buildings by 4.1% and 8.7%, respectively.
Housing shortage and construction activity
According to a study by the Federal Institute for Building, Urban and Spatial Research (BBSR), Germany needs to build 320,000 new apartments every year until 2030 to meet growing demand, boosted by the influx of immigrants from Ukraine and Syria. However, in 2024, only 216,000 apartments were authorized, the lowest number since 2010 and reflecting the real estate crisis.
Financial performance and investments
Germany’s largest real estate group, Vonovia, reported its third consecutive annual loss in 2024, amounting to EUR 962.3 million, due to significant write-downs in property values. Nevertheless, CEO Rolf Buch predicts a return to profitability in 2025, provided that real estate prices stabilize.
Forecast for 2025
German house prices are expected to grow by 3.5% in 2025, although there is a significant risk of weaker growth. The market continues to face difficulties due to high borrowing and construction costs. Rental growth is expected to exceed house price growth, making it difficult for potential buyers to save a down payment.
In general, the German residential real estate market in 2024 was characterized by declining prices and slowing construction activity. Forecasts for 2025 suggest a moderate increase in prices, but the market remains sensitive to economic and political factors.
Source: http://relocation.com.ua/analysis-of-residential-real-estate-market-in-germany/
