Moldova ranks among the countries closest to Ukraine not only geographically but also in terms of public perception. According to a survey conducted in March 2026 by the research company Active Group in collaboration with the Experts Club information and analytical center, 60.1% of Ukrainians describe their attitude toward Moldova as positive, a significant increase from 51.3% in August 2025. Thus, over the course of six months, positive perception has increased by nearly 9 percentage points.
The distribution of positive attitudes is fairly even: 22.8% of respondents chose the option “completely positive,” while another 37.3% selected “mostly positive.” This indicates not only a general level of favorability but also that a significant portion of Ukrainians have a well-formed and stable positive perception of Moldova.
At the same time, the share of neutral assessments remains relatively high—32.9%. This is a typical figure for countries that, despite their proximity, are not at the center of the constant information flow. However, even with such a proportion of neutral responses, the overall balance of perception is clearly tilted toward the positive side.
Negative attitudes toward Moldova remain minimal—5.4% in March 2026 (compared to 4.7% in August 2025). Although this figure has risen slightly, it remains at a low level, confirming the absence of significant sources of tension in bilateral perceptions.
The trend indicates a gradual strengthening of Moldova’s positive image in Ukrainian society. The increase in positive sentiment occurred both due to a shift of some neutral assessments toward positive ones and through a general rise in the level of trust in the country.
In a broader context, these results can be explained by the proximity of Ukraine’s and Moldova’s interests, shared security challenges, as well as similar European integration trajectories. In the minds of Ukrainians, Moldova is increasingly perceived as a partner with a similar political and values-based context.
“Attitudes toward Moldova are a telling example of how a stable, positive image of a neighboring country is formed. Here, not only geographical proximity plays an important role, but also a sense of shared interests and a similar strategic course. It is precisely these factors that ensure the long-term strengthening of trust in society,” noted Maksym Urakin, founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center.
Thus, Moldova holds a firm position among countries with a high level of positive perception in Ukraine. Its image is characterized by stability, a low level of negativity, and a gradual increase in trust, making this country one of the most predictable and understandable partners in the region.
According to a study conducted by the Experts Club Information and Analytical Center based on data from the State Customs Service, the Republic of Moldova ranks 21st in total trade volume of goods with Ukraine, with a figure of $1.32 billion. At the same time, Ukraine has a clear trade surplus, as exports to Moldova exceed imports by more than seven times.
The study was presented at the Interfax-Ukraine press center; the video can be viewed on the agency’s YouTube channel. The full version of the study can be found at this link on the Experts Club analytical center’s website.
ACTIVE GROUP, EXPERTS CLUB, MOLDOVA, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, SURVEY, UKRAINE, URAKIN
Ferrexpo plc, a mining company with primary assets in Ukraine, produced 524,926 thousand tons of pellets in January–March of this year, which is 61% lower than in January–March of last year (1,347,749 thousand tons), but 27% more than in Q4 2025, when 412,867 thousand tons were produced.
According to the company’s press release on Wednesday, total production of commercial products (pellets and iron ore concentrate) in Q1 2026 fell by 72% compared to Q1 2025—to 592,751 thousand tons. Specifically, production of premium-grade Fe67% concentrate amounted to 67,825 thousand tons, compared to 777,718 thousand tons in Q1 2025 (a 91% decrease). The company also produced 524,926 thousand tons of premium-grade pellets (a 52% decrease). Meanwhile, no DR pellets (81,787 thousand tons were produced in Q1 2025) or other pellets (160,913 thousand tons) were produced.
The press release explains that Ferrexpo’s production activities were largely suspended in the first quarter due to nationwide attacks on Ukraine’s electricity generation and transmission infrastructure. Production resumed only with limited operations at reduced capacity levels in late February 2026 following improved electricity availability and prices. The Group continues to operate one of its four pelletizing lines and sell its products to European customers.
As noted in the trading update announced on April 1, 2026, the Group focused on carefully managing its working capital and expenses amid challenging operating conditions. This included reducing employee working hours, continuously cutting purchases of goods and services, and further suspending all non-essential capital expenditures, overhead costs, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenses.
The company continues to closely monitor its cash position and working capital and remains actively exploring and refining a range of potential financing options, which may include raising equity capital. At this stage, there is no certainty that the Group will successfully secure such financing options. If the withholding of VAT refunds continues and financing issues are not resolved in a timely manner, this could result in significant adverse consequences for the Group.
Commenting on the Group’s performance, interim acting chairman Lucio Genovese (Lucio Genovese) noted that the lower production figures in the first quarter of 2026—nearly half of those achieved in the last three months of 2025—reflect Russia’s targeted attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure at the end of last year and their impact on the company’s ability to operate stably.
“Until January, given that electricity supply could not be secured on a stable basis in the necessary volumes, we were forced to make the difficult decision to temporarily suspend operations and send part of the workforce on leave. Fortunately, by the end of February, we saw sufficient improvement in the availability and price of electricity to resume limited production at the PGZK on one pellet production line. One line remains in operation, and the group continues to use its own fleet of railcars for exports to customers in Eastern and Central Europe. “Going forward, we will focus on managing working capital and costs in this challenging operating environment,” said Genovese.
As reported, Ferrexpo produced 3,221,461 metric tons of pellets in 2025, which is 47% lower than in the previous year (6,070,541 metric tons). At the same time, total production of commercial products (pellets and iron ore concentrate) in 2025 decreased by 9% to 6,141,759 thousand tons. In particular, commercial concentrate output amounted to 2,920,298 thousand tons compared to 709,803 thousand tons, respectively. The company also produced 81,787 thousand tons of DR pellets (489,720 thousand tons in 2024) and 3,139,674 thousand tons of premium-grade pellets (a 44% decrease).
In 2024, Ferrexpo increased pellet production by 58% compared to 2023—to 6,070,541 thousand tons from 3,845,325 thousand tons. In 2023, the company produced 3.845 million tons of pellets, which is 36.5% less than in 2022.
Ferrexpo owns a 100% stake in Yeristivsky GOK LLC, 99.9% in Bilanivsky GOK LLC, and 100% of the shares in Poltavsky GOK PJSC.
According to Fixygen, Odessa Port Plant JSC intends to hold an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on May 5, 2026, in a remote format via a written ballot. Voting will begin on April 24 at 11:00 a.m. and end on May 5 at 6:00 p.m., and the list of shareholders eligible to participate in the meeting will be compiled as of April 30.
According to the published announcement, the agenda includes three items: termination of the powers of Acting Chairman of the Board and Director Yuriy Kovalsky; election of Konstantin Shabunyaev as the new Acting Chairman of the Board and Director effective May 19, 2026; and approval of the terms of his contract, the amount of his remuneration, and the designation of the person who will sign the contract on behalf of the company. The decision to convene remote extraordinary meetings was made by the State Property Fund of Ukraine as a shareholder of the company.
Odessa Port Plant JSC is registered in the city of Pivdenne, Odessa Oblast; its primary activity is the production of fertilizers and nitrogen compounds. The state, through the State Property Fund, owns 99.5667% of the company’s shares; the authorized capital amounts to UAH 798.544 million. According to public registries, in 2025 the plant’s revenue amounted to UAH 328.687 million, its net loss was UAH 808.924 million, and its assets at year-end stood at UAH 4.366 billion.
The Odesa Port Plant remains one of the most complex and well-known privatization projects in Ukraine. The first attempt to sell it in July 2016 failed due to a lack of bids, and the second attempt in December 2016 also ended without any bidders. In June 2018, the State Property Fund again decided to privatize the state’s stake in the Odessa Port Plant, and in 2025 put 99.5667% of the shares up for auction with a starting price of 4.489 billion UAH; however, the auction scheduled for November 25 did not take place due to a lack of registered participants. In late March 2026, the Ministry of Economy stated that OPZ remains a key target for large-scale privatization and may be put up for sale again after the terms are adjusted.
A sociological survey conducted in March 2026 by the research firm Active Group in collaboration with the Experts Club information and analytical center shows a consistently positive attitude among Ukrainians toward Belgium, with a noticeable upward trend. The share of positive assessments rose to 58.7% compared to 54.7% in August 2025. At the same time, the level of negative perception also increased slightly—from 0.3% to 2.3%—though it remains low overall.
The breakdown of responses indicates a predominance of moderately positive perceptions. 19.3% of respondents view Belgium entirely positively, while 39.4% selected the “mostly positive” option. At the same time, the share of neutral assessments remains significant—37.1%—indicating a limited level of formed perception of the country among Ukrainians.
Negative assessments are marginal: 1.4% of respondents indicated a mostly negative attitude, and another 0.9%—a completely negative one. The share of those who could not decide on an answer is 1.9%. This pattern of indicators suggests the absence of systemic negativity, but at the same time—insufficient intensity of informational or emotional interaction with this country.
In terms of trends, it is worth noting not only the growth in positive assessments but also a slight increase in negative ones. This may be linked to the general polarization of public opinion, where neutral positions are partially shifting toward more defined ones—both positive and negative. At the same time, the key trend remains the gradual strengthening of positive perceptions.
“Attitudes toward countries such as Belgium are shaped not so much by direct experience of interaction as by the broader European context and associations with the EU’s institutional role. When a country is associated with support for Ukraine at the level of politics, the economy, or humanitarian initiatives, this gradually translates into a rise in positive perception. At the same time, the high proportion of neutral responses indicates that the potential for strengthening this image is far from exhausted,” noted Maksym Urakin, founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center.
Thus, for Ukrainians, Belgium remains a country with a predominantly positive but not fully formed image. Further growth in positive attitudes will largely depend on the visibility of its role in supporting Ukraine, as well as on practical contacts in the spheres of the economy, education, and humanitarian cooperation.
According to a study conducted by the Experts Club Information and Analytical Center based on data from the State Customs Service, Belgium ranks 22nd in total trade volume with Ukraine, amounting to $1.29 billion. Imports of Belgian goods slightly exceed Ukrainian exports, so the bilateral trade balance remains negative.
The study was presented at the Interfax-Ukraine press center; the video can be viewed on the agency’s YouTube channel. The full version of the study can be found at this link on the Experts Club analytical center’s website.
ACTIVE GROUP, BELGIUM, EXPERTS CLUB, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, SURVEY, UKRAINE, URAKIN
Nova Poshta, Ukraine’s leading express delivery service, operated on Easter for the first time this year: it accepted 276,000 parcels from customers and delivered approximately 500,000 parcels, according to the company’s co-founder Volodymyr Poperešniuk.
“For the first time, Nova Poshta operated on Easter… It might seem like we were just doing our job, but we gave hundreds of thousands of people a pleasant experience on this holiday,” Poperechnyuk wrote on Facebook, thanking the company’s employees who came to work.
As reported, on Easter, April 12, the company operated on a reduced schedule—from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
“Nova Poshta” currently has 51,852 service points in Ukraine, including 15,913 branches of various formats and 35,939 parcel terminals.
As reported, in 2025 the company increased the number of delivered parcels and shipments by 7.4%—from 486 million to 522 million—including international shipments, which rose by 52.6%, from 19 million to 29 million. Its revenue grew by 21% compared to 2024—to more than 54 billion UAH, while profit amounted to 2.6 billion UAH compared to 2.5 billion UAH a year earlier.
Nova Poshta’s core business is express delivery of documents, parcels, and palletized oversized cargo. Its ultimate beneficial owners are Volodymyr Poperechnyuk and Vyacheslav Klimov.
On September 9, 2025, Ukraine’s second-largest mobile operator, Vodafone Ukraine (VFU), acquired a 9.4% stake in fixed-line operator Frinet LLC for $2 million (83 million UAH), bringing its total stake to 100%.
“$2 million was paid to shareholders whose stakes did not provide control. The book value of non-controlling interests in Frinet LLC was 27 million UAH,” according to Vodafone Ukraine’s annual report.
According to the report, in 2025 the group increased revenue by 14% compared to the previous year—to UAH 27.8 billion—and net profit by 18%, to UAH 4.18 billion.
It is noted that revenue from mobile subscribers grew by 16.4%—to UAH 22.09 billion—while revenue from the fixed-line business increased by 15.9%, to UAH 1.09 billion, revenue from interconnection with other mobile operators rose by 1.5% to UAH 2.51 billion, from roaming by 3.1% to UAH 0.78 billion, and from merchandise sales by 0.6% to UAH 923 million.
Last year’s increase in cost of sales to UAH 7.02 billion from UAH 6.01 billion in 2024 was largely due to higher electricity costs and other production expenses—rising to UAH 2.86 billion from UAH 2.4 billion, as well as fees for radio frequency usage—to UAH 1.38 billion from UAH 1.13 billion—and roaming expenses—to UAH 0.41 billion from UAH 0.33 billion, while expenses for traffic transit on other mobile operators’ networks even decreased slightly—to UAH 1.15 billion from UAH 1.16 billion.
In addition, last year Vodafone Ukraine’s expenses for advertising and marketing rose to 0.51 billion UAH from 0.43 billion UAH a year earlier, commissions to dealers – to 0.50 billion UAH from 0.43 billion UAH, for consulting – to 0.69 billion UAH from 0.57 billion UAH, and billing and data processing to UAH 0.46 billion from UAH 0.36 billion.
According to the report, the number of the group’s full-time employees remained unchanged over the year—approximately 4,500 people.
It is noted that the company plans to continue servicing its financial obligations on time, although there is inherent uncertainty related to the moratorium on cross-border payments. “The ability to repay the principal amount of debt (on Eurobonds), which amounts to $281 million with a maturity date in February 2027, depends to a large extent on the continuation of currency control restrictions at that time. It also depends on the Group’s ability to secure refinancing from financial institutions or to negotiate changes to the bond terms with creditors,” the document states.
According to the document, the Group may take additional measures to manage and control cash outflows in order to secure refinancing or reach agreements, and management is currently considering all options on this list depending on the status of foreign exchange controls.
“Based on management’s forecasts, it is expected that the Group will be able to meet the terms of its debt financing agreements regarding financial covenants over the next twelve months from the date of these consolidated financial statements,” the report states.
The company noted that in February it made its regular semi-annual interest payment on Eurobonds in the amount of $13.4 million (578 million UAH).
According to the report, in 2025, “Vodafone Ukraine” declared dividends to shareholders totaling UAH 3.01 billion; as of December 31, 2025, dividends in the amount of UAH 412 million remained unpaid, but in the first quarter, an additional UAH 151 million in dividends were paid.
It is also noted that to manage currency risk and purchase foreign currency, the group acquired dollar- and euro-denominated domestic government bonds with maturities of up to 12 months. At the same time, their total volume at the end of 2025 decreased to the equivalent of 0.97 billion UAH from 1.33 billion UAH a year earlier, and while all securities were denominated in dollars at the end of 2024, by the end of 2025, the equivalent of $0.28 billion had been invested in euro-denominated bonds.
As of the end of 2025, Vodafone Ukraine’s available cash amounted to UAH 8.09 billion, compared to UAH 10.34 billion a year earlier, of which 49.1% was in hryvnia, and nearly all the rest was in dollars.
In addition, as of the end of 2025, the company held a short-term deposit at 0.4% for the equivalent of UAH 0.85 billion in one of the subsidiary banks of a major international banking group, which was classified as a short-term investment, whereas a year earlier, similar deposits at 0.3–0.35% per annum were held in three subsidiary banks of major international banking groups for a total of 2.02 billion UAH.
