Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking by video link to the participants in the conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine (Rome), called on Italian business to invest in the Ukrainian economy based on new security standards.
As the president stressed, Ukraine and its partners will have to prepare already this year the most ambitious economic project of modern times in Europe, in particular, the project for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
“Europe has not seen such destruction since World War II, which was brought to Ukraine by the Russian Federation. But it was after that war that Europe saw what real reconstruction yields and what growth brings. We are now on the cusp of no less opportunity. There is a demand in the world for new security standards so that every country can defend itself against any manifestation of aggression. We in Ukraine are creating such security standards,” Zelensky said.
The head of state called on representatives of Italian business and investors to join the reconstruction of Ukraine on the basis of new security standards in 5 key areas: energy, construction, technology, access to global markets and cooperation in pharmaceuticals and human rehabilitation.
Speaking of the energy sphere, Zelensky emphasized that now it is necessary to do everything to prevent the enemy from having even a theoretical opportunity to break the Ukrainian energy sector. The answer to this can only be its transformation and decentralization of energy production.
“The more green energy producers, the more resilient the system. The more sources of energy supply, the more reliably each city, community and family is supplied. Italy is one of the leaders in the creation of smart grids. I invite your companies to develop together the Ukrainian networks. Do not forget that in the near future Ukrainian networks will be the EU networks,” he said.
The President also noted that Ukraine has an enormous need to rebuild infrastructure on a new security basis, and therefore he invited Italian companies to plan, design and build together with Ukrainians.
In addition, he called on Italy to invest in the production in Ukraine of military equipment, which it receives from partners, in particular sea drones, UAVs, etc.
Also, according to the President, Ukraine to assist in the processing of its own resources with the subsequent entry into the global market. Which, in turn, will help to replace companies from Russia.
Finally, the last example of cooperation between Ukraine and Italy could be pharmaceuticals and rehabilitation of people affected by war.
Ukraine is a huge market for pharmaceutical products as well. Localization of production in our country gives a huge benefit. But the war has given a new level to this industry – we are talking about people who need rehabilitation after injuries and those whose lives are poisoned by post-traumatic disorders. We will work on this in Ukraine together with the best representatives in the world. Ukraine has a unique experience in defense of the state and people in the conditions of aggression. We invite Italy to build a new security together with us, we invite your business, investment and experience to come to Ukraine now”, – summarized Zelensky.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has held a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“Had a long informative telephone conversation with the head of China Xi Jinping. I believe that it, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China will give a powerful boost to the development of our bilateral relations,” Zelensky wrote on Twitter on Wednesday.
The president of Ukraine has appointed Pavlo Ryabikin as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the People’s Republic of China.
According to the official portal of the President of Ukraine, this is enshrined in the decree of the head of state No. 239/2023 of April 26, 2023
From November 2021 to March 2023 Ryabikin was the Minister of Strategic Industries of Ukraine.
Stock indices of Asia-Pacific region do not show common dynamics at the trading on Wednesday.
Pressure on the market is growing fears of a new wave of banking crisis in the U.S. after the publication of reports First Republic Bank, which showed a sharp outflow of investors’ funds from deposits at the bank in the first quarter.
Investors’ attention is focused on the next meeting of the Bank of Japan, the results of which will be summarized on Friday. The day before the new head of the Japanese Central Bank Kazuo Ueda confirmed his intention to keep soft monetary policy in the country.
“Given the current economic, inflation and financial conditions, I think it is appropriate to maintain a soft policy with the current yield curve control,” Ueda said during a speech to a parliamentary committee on Tuesday.
In addition, the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party is due to meet this week. Experts expect the ruling party leaders to focus on measures to improve business sentiment, boost employment and strengthen the housing market without additional stimulus.
Traditionally, the results of the meeting of the Politburo set the tone for the Chinese government policy in the coming months.
Chinese stock index Shanghai Composite gained 0,19% in the course of trading on Wednesday, the Hong Kong Hang Seng went up by 1,02%.
Leaders of the decline in mainland China are shares of technology companies: Dawning Information fell by 5.5%, 360 Security Technology fell by 3.1%, Inspur Electronic fell by 2.5% and iFLYTEK fell by 4.8%.
Shares of Chinese liquor maker Kweichow Moutai Co. are up 1.1% thanks to the company’s strong first-quarter report.
Aluminum Corp. of China gained 2.4 percent despite a decline in the aluminum maker’s net income and revenue last quarter.
In Hong Kong, shares of JD.Com (+4.1%), BYD Co. (+3.4%) and Geely Automobile (+3%) rose.
Hong Kong exports fell 1.5% to $367.2 billion in March, official data showed. The drop was recorded for the 11th month in a row, but its pace was the weakest since last May.
Imports fell 0.6%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock index lost 0.7% in trading.
Shares of financial companies Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui fell in price by 1.8% and 2.5% respectively.
The value of Nidec securities fell by 2.2%, Hitachi – 1.5%, Sony Group – 1.6%.
South Korea’s KOSPI stock index lost 0.06% in trading and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.05%.
Inflation in Australia slowed to 7% in the first quarter of 2023 from 7.8% in the fourth quarter of last year, according to released data. The rate of inflation in January-March was the slowest since the second quarter of 2022.
Agro-industrial holding Astarta does not expect a significant drop in income because of the ban on imports of agricultural products from Ukraine imposed by Poland and other neighboring countries, as it intends to export its products to Western European countries, representatives of the company’s board said at an online conference on Tuesday.
“We have permission to transit through these countries. Rather, our export targets are Western European countries, such as Spain, Italy, Greece and Croatia. We don’t see much risk to our revenues,” Infostrefa quoted Astarta Commercial Director Vyacheslav Chuk as saying from a conference call Tuesday.
Julia Bereshchenko, director of investor relations, expressed confidence that Astarta will be supported by expected sugar shortages in the EU and world market.
“Sugar shortages are expected not only in the EU, but worldwide as the world’s largest sugar producers, such as Brazil and India, begin to use sugar to produce ethanol. This could potentially reduce these countries’ exports,” she said.
As reported, Astarta agro-industrial holding, the largest sugar producer in Ukraine, received EUR65.16 million net profit in 2022, down 46.8% compared to 201.
The holding’s EBITDA shrank by 23.2% to EUR154.77 mln, while revenues increased by 3.8% to EUR510.07 mln.
Oil prices are declining on Tuesday afternoon after rising in the previous two sessions amid a stronger dollar. In addition, investors continue to evaluate the prospects for fuel demand.
The price of June Brent crude futures on London’s ICE Futures exchange stood at $82.18 a barrel by 3:17 p.m. Tuesday, down $0.55 (0.66%) from the previous session’s closing price.
The price of June WTI futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) is down $0.51 (0.65%) to $78.25 a barrel by this time.
The DXY index, which shows the value of the U.S. dollar against six major world currencies, is up 0.2% in trading, making oil less attractive to holders of other currencies.
The market also fears further tightening of monetary policy by central banks, which could have a negative impact on global economic growth and demand for energy, writes Trading Economics.
Additional pressure on prices is reducing the profitability of processing at Asian enterprises. Analysts attribute the decline in profitability to, among other things, the increase in production at new refineries in the Middle East.
