Import changes in % to previous period in 2023-2024
Open4Business.com.ua
China’s economic growth rate may fall “substantially below 4%” if the country’s authorities fail to implement reforms aimed at supporting domestic demand, said the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva. The main obstacle to the recovery of consumer confidence in the PRC remains the troubled real estate sector, and the government needs to take measures aimed at fixing this problem, she said at a briefing in Washington.
In addition, in response to a question from an Egyptian journalist, Georgieva said she would soon visit Egypt to discuss the terms of an $8 billion loan program.
“We are open to adjusting the Egyptian program or any other program so that it best meets the interests of the people,” she said, adding that the Egyptian government still needs to implement reforms, and the sooner the better.
Earlier, Egyptian authorities signaled that it was becoming more difficult for them to meet the conditions voiced when granting the IMF loan due to geopolitical tensions in the region. Those conditions include, among others, cuts in government spending, including subsidies on fuel, electricity and food.
Insurance company “Quorum” (Kyiv) in January-June 2024 collected insurance premiums in the amount of UAH 30 million, which is 29.97% more than in the same period of 2023, the rating agency (RA) “Standard-Rating” reported in information on updating the credit rating / financial strength rating of the company on the national scale at the level of “uaAA”.
At the same time, it was clarified that the rating was updated based on the analysis of the company’s performance for the specified reporting period.
During this period, revenues from individuals increased by 26.38% to UAH 18.320 million, while there were no revenues from reinsurers. The share of individuals in gross premiums amounted to 61%.
Insurance payments sent to reinsurers in the first half of 2024 amounted to UAH 9,710 million, which is 29.24% higher than in the first half of 2023. The ratio of reinsurers’ participation in insurance premiums decreased by 0.19 pp to 32.33%.
The insurer’s net written premiums increased by 30.33% to UAH 20.322 million, and net earned premiums increased by 30.72% to UAH 20.165 million.
The volume of insurance payments and reimbursements made by the company in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023 increased by 24.38% to UAH 3,449 million, while the level of payments decreased by 0.52 percentage points to 11.48%.
RA notes that the company’s activities in the analyzed period were profitable. In particular, the profit from operating activities amounted to UAH 6.946 million, and net profit – UAH 6.644 million.
As of July 1, 2024, the company’s assets increased by 0.25% to UAH 64.127 million, equity – by 6.68% to UAH 59.776 million, liabilities showed a decrease of 45.18% to UAH 4.351 million, cash and cash equivalents increased by 2.95% to UAH 45.718 million.
Quorum Insurance Company was established in March 2014 and specializes in risk insurance.
During the annual Conference on Humanitarian Demining in Ukraine–2024 (UMAC-2024), partner countries announced nearly $70 million in additional commitments to support humanitarian demining. Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Canada pledged additional funding. Since 2022, the total contribution from international partners has reached $1.07 billion.
“We greatly appreciate the contributions made by our partners to humanitarian demining in Ukraine. This is not just about equipment, funds, or projects – it’s about saving lives in Ukraine and restoring global food security. Thanks to this consistent support, we have already made significant progress in demining. A year ago, we met with partners at a demining forum in Zagreb, Croatia. At the time, we had 18 operators, around 3,000 deminers, and 32 demining machines. Today, 58 operators have been certified, the number of deminers has increased to over 4,000, and 98 demining machines are in operation,” said Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy.
Luxembourg allocated $13 million for humanitarian demining projects in Ukraine. These funds will go to projects implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) ($10.8 million), the international organization HALO Trust ($1.08 million), and through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism ($1.08 million).
Norway also announced additional funding for demining in Ukraine. The country will allocate $20 million for 2025, increasing its total contribution to $70 million. Norway’s efforts are focused on funding field operations, supporting affected communities, and strengthening demining capabilities.
The Netherlands, which has already contributed over $40 million to humanitarian demining in Ukraine, announced an additional $10.8 million for projects in 2025.
Canada will provide $24.5 million for humanitarian demining needs in Ukraine, bringing its total contribution to over $50 million.
The government of Latvia allocated over €270,000 for humanitarian demining in Ukraine. These funds will go to HALO Trust, whose specialists are working to clear land in several regions of Ukraine affected by military operations.
Switzerland, the host country of UMAC-2024, announced plans to deliver three heavy GCS-200 demining machines to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SES). The symbolic handover of the first machine took place during the conference. Switzerland also committed to providing 30 million Swiss francs to one of the projects of the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD), which operates in Ukraine. This funding is part of a previously announced assistance package worth 100 million Swiss francs.
The governments of Switzerland and the United Kingdom are ready to fund a pilot project for prioritizing humanitarian demining efforts. The system, based on a platform from the tech giant Palantir, will use large-scale data to determine priority areas for demining. The pilot project in Kharkiv region will last for three months.
The U.S., which announced $102 million in humanitarian demining assistance in September, introduced an initiative at the conference aimed at increasing the capacity of private demining operators. They plan to assess the needs of Ukrainian operators and strengthen their knowledge of how international donor organizations work, which will help these operators attract future international support. The first step in this direction could be strengthening cooperation between Ukrainian and international operators.
A final document supporting humanitarian demining in Ukraine was signed by 42 countries. One of its key points is that demining efforts should remain on the international agenda. The signatories committed to minimizing the impact of mines and war remnants on people’s lives through demining operations and the development of innovative technologies.
I. Representation:
II. Financial Commitments:
During UMAC-2024, partner countries announced additional commitments for humanitarian demining, amounting to nearly $70 million. Since 2022, the total partner contribution to humanitarian demining has reached $1.07 billion.
III. Additional Agreements:
Metinvest Group’s KAMETSTAL plant, which was set up at the facilities of Dnipro Metallurgical Plant (DMK, Kamenskoye, Dnipro Oblast), increased production of long products in September this year.
“In September, Kametstal shipped more than 4 thousand tons of SVP-27 long sections to Pokrovsk miners. Thus, for the first time, the rolling shop team has reached stable industrial production volumes of products mastered as part of Metinvest’s program to restore the partially lost product mix that was previously produced at Mariupol’s steel mills,” the company said.
It is also recalled that the production of SVP-27 longitudinal shaped sections was first mastered in Ukraine at Kametstal’s pipe billet mill. The so-called mine support is designed to secure mine workings in mines and is an essential element in coal mining technology. The new rolled products have passed certification tests that confirmed their compliance with the requirements of the state standard.
It is also noted that since the commissioning, during which SVP-27 was rolled in carloads of 200-500 tons per month, the rollers have done a lot of work, which resulted in an increase in production to 2 thousand tons per month in the summer of 2024, and in September, for the first time, more than 4 thousand tons of this marginal product were manufactured and shipped to consumers.
In particular, the company purchased additional improved dock fittings that were installed at the pipe billeting mill, while specialists modified and improved the existing equipment.
In addition, a straightening machine designed to bring rolled metal products into compliance with regulatory requirements for profile straightness was refurbished in an adjacent area. The parameters of the machine have been worked out and adjusted to work with this complex profile, which has an order length of 7-9 meters.
Artem Laptev, acting chief rolling operator, explained that the path from development to commercial production of such a complex profile is a systematic work of the entire rolling team in cooperation with the process control specialists, constantly improving the rolling process.
“All comments that arise in the production process are worked out and eliminated immediately. SVP-27 was developed in difficult wartime conditions, when there was a shortage of qualified personnel, and thanks to systematic training of the shop’s process and maintenance personnel, all key specialists have now mastered the skills of rolling this profile and working with the equipment. As a result, 99% of this product, which is important for the company’s coal mining enterprises, is accepted on first presentation, and additional processing at the right section, which brings the product to the required quality parameters, makes it possible to ship almost 100% of rolled SVP-27 to our customers,” stated Laptev.
“Kametstal was established on the basis of PJSC Dneprovsky Coke and Chemical Plant (DKKhZ) and the Centralized Rolling Mill of PJSC Dneprovsky Metallurgical Plant (DMK).
According to the 2020 report of Metinvest Group’s parent company, Metinvest B.V. (Netherlands) owned 100% of the shares in DCCP.
