In 2025, the apple harvest in Ukraine will decrease by 7.6% compared to last year, to about 1 million tons, according to the World Apple and Pear Association (WAPA) in its annual report Prognosfruit 2025.
The decline is primarily due to spring frosts that affected a number of European countries. In Europe, the most serious decline is expected in Greece (-51.5%), Romania (-39.5%), and Serbia (-26.7%).
At the same time, production is expected to increase in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Belgium, which will partially offset the decline in the affected countries.
According to WAPA estimates, total apple production in the European Union in 2025 will amount to 10.46 million tons, which is 7.5% below the average level of recent years but almost at the level of 2024. Among the varieties, the largest declines are expected for Red Delicious (-19.2%) and Idared (-8.8%), while Golden Delicious will decline by only 0.9% and Gala will maintain last year’s volumes.
Investment REIT company Inzhur plans to merge five of its funds into one—Inzhur REIT—and is considering investments in retail parks, according to the company’s Telegram channel. According to the report, Inzhur REIT will include the funds “1001,” “2001,” Inzhur Supermarket, “Inzhur Zhitny,” and Inzhur Ocean. At the same time, Inzhur Energy will remain a separate fund.
Inzhur REIT will be valid until May 20, 2045, with a nominal value of UAH 10 per certificate and a yield of 9.5% per annum in US dollars. The planned issue is UAH 10 billion. The company will convert the acquired certificates of existing funds at the net asset value into certificates of the combined fund.
“Inzhur’s strategic goal for the next three years is to teach one million Ukrainians to invest at the most comfortable price: the new combined fund will make this possible,” the company said.
The new fund is expected to invest in real estate, land plots, corporate rights of companies, construction of new facilities, corporate bonds, and domestic government bonds. At the same time, retail parks should become a new area of investment.
“Retail Park is a very popular European form of ‘everything in one place’ establishments. Along highways and on the outskirts of cities, with excellent parking, there are various stores united by the concept of a shopping area. Inzhur is already purchasing land for its first retail park in the Kyiv region, exploring options, and conducting negotiations,” the statement said.
As Inzhur founder Andriy Zhurzhiy told Interfax-Ukraine, plots of 1.5-3 hectares in the suburbs with high traffic of potential buyers are being considered for future retail parks.
In addition, Inzhur is already preparing to acquire an existing shopping and entertainment center west of Kyiv worth about $36 million: technical, legal, and financial audits are being conducted, and documents are being prepared to obtain permission for the acquisition from the Antimonopoly Committee. It is noted that the shopping and entertainment center generates 15% of net operating income annually.
The first Ukrainian service for joint real estate acquisition, Inzhur REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust), was launched in early 2022 before the war. As of August 7, six Inzhur REIT real estate funds managed assets worth UAH 3.56 billion, had 20,400 co-owners, and generated UAH 866.7 million in dividends.
The founder and investor of Inzhur is Andriy Zhurzhii, chairman of the supervisory board of the investment fund Zhurzhii Ventures. The fund owns the development company Smile Development (which built and sold more than 35 Silpo and Fora supermarkets to investors, as well as the Optimisto residential complex in the village of Hatne near Kyiv) and the asset management company Investment Partners, which manages assets worth UAH 45 billion in Ukraine and the European Union.
The EU-Ukraine Association Council is scheduled for September 5, said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign and Security Policy.
“We will continue to support Ukraine in advancing the reform agenda of its European perspective after Ukraine has been granted candidate status. We will hold an Association Council on September 5 after the summer break and we are working to ensure that this Council advances the European perspective for Ukraine through implementation of the necessary reforms,” he announced on Monday in Brussels at a press conference following the meeting of the EU Council at the level of foreign ministers.
Borrell confirmed that the ministers had unanimously approved his proposal for the next tranche from the European Peace Fund in the amount of 500 million euros, which will be formally decided in the coming days.
The High Representative stated that the EU is “terrified of the brutality of Russian aggression against the civilian population in Ukraine, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war”, the Russians are “burning fields with grain”, “blocking food supplies” and “are responsible for world hunger” . “Russia is trying to destroy Ukraine and the Ukrainian nation, while at the same time unleashing the global food and energy crisis. Ministers agreed that we must continue to stand by Ukraine in its struggle for independence. Ukraine needs more weapons and we will supply them. We We will continue to support Ukraine,” he assured.
Borrell also said that work continues on sanctions for the Russian Federation. He also refuted claims that energy price increases were driven up by the EU’s ban on Russian oil. “Many say that the EU, by imposing sanctions, provoked a rise in prices. This is not true. The price of oil rose one month before the war, and after we banned the export of oil from Russia, the price of oil fell,” the High Representative stated. .
An office of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) has been opened in Ukraine, WTC Kyiv President Valeriy Mescheriakov said at a press conference.
“Ukraine’s entry into the World Trade Centers Association indicates that the country’s investment, entrepreneurial and innovative potential today attracts foreign investors,” he said.
According to the President of WTC Kyiv, the opening of the WTCA office introduces Ukraine to the global business environment as an equal, full-fledged member.
“This powerful business community, uniting about 100 countries, has offices in 318 cities around the world. We see two main directions, promoting competitive products of our manufacturers to new markets and raising investments for domestic development projects,” Mescheriakov said.
Within two years, the headquarters of WTC Kyiv will be constructed in Kyiv.
The World Trade Center in Kyiv (WTC Kyiv) represents an international community that brings together entrepreneurs, industrialists, government agencies and local governments to give a new impetus to the Ukrainian economy for the competitive development of citizens and business initiatives. WTC Kyiv received the status of a WTCA member.
WTCA is an international ecosystem of global connectivity and integrated trading services, operating in nearly 100 countries. The association fosters trade and investment opportunities for commercial property developers, economic development agencies and international business.
Ukrainian national hotel operators and companies in the field of development and management of hotels and resorts with the support of the public union Visit Ukraine have united into the Ukrainian Hotel & Resort Association (UHRA).
“The Association is aimed at creating favorable conditions for sustainable recovery and development of the hotel industry as part of the tourist infrastructure of Ukraine, participating in the development and implementation of state policy for the development of tourism as one of the most promising sectors of services, including on the international market,” the association said in the Facebook social network.
The association includes hotel and resort operators Premier Hotels and Resorts, Reikartz Hotel Group, Ribas Hotels Group, Vertex Hotel Group, DEOL Partners, Edem Resort Medical & Spa, ArtBuild Hotel Group, and Burford.
The association plans to participate in the development of national standards for the provision of hotel services and bring them to international standards, as well as in government programs for the development of the tourism industry, to develop economic instruments to support the industry to save jobs.
The Blockchain Association of Ukraine (BAU) has proposed to make Ukraine competitive jurisdiction for companies dealing with cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology and proposed some principles for being implemented into the law, including the introduction of 5% tax on deals with cryptocurrency.
The respective document was posted on the association’s website last week.
According to the text of the document, proposals for implementation in the legislation in the field of regulation of cryptocurrencies were developed with the aim of accelerating the pace of development of this market.
In particular, according to the association, cryptocurrency exchange and sale transactions should not be subject to VAT and cryptocurrency suppliers should not be tax agents of individuals. For transactions with cryptocurrency, personal income tax should be levied at a rate of 5%, and the tax base should be net profit for the reporting year.
Blockchain Ukraine also proposes to introduce licensing of the exchange of cryptocurrency for fiat currencies.
The BAU said that the proposals of the association were accepted for consideration by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and the interfactional parliamentary association of the Verkhovna Rada Blockchain4Ukraine.
In the near future, it is planned to sign a memorandum of understanding and cooperation between the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the community of blockchain and crypto companies.
The Blockchain Association of Ukraine brings together experts in the blockchain industry and is a non-profit organization that actively promotes the integration of blockchain technology into the Ukrainian economy. The main mission of the association is to develop multilateral dialogue, the result of which will be consensus in all areas of activity.
