In 2024-2025 marketing year (MY, July-June), Ukraine remained the main supplier of rapeseed to the European Union, supplying 3.4 mln tonnes of the seed, up 5% compared to the same period of the previous year, APK-Inform reported citing the German Grain and Oilseed Farmers’ Association (UFOP).
“With the volume of 2.2 mln tons and the import share of 63%, Ukraine remains the most important country of origin, as in previous years. This is slightly higher than the last year’s volume of 2.1 mln tons,” the analysts said.
At the same time, the second wave of oilseed imports from Australia is expected in the second half of the season, which has already supplied 875 thsd tonnes of rapeseed to the EU market by mid-January. According to the research of Agrarmarkt Informations-Gesellschaft (mbH), this is about 19% more than in the same period last season.
“With the share of almost 26%, Australia is the second most important supplier of rapeseed to the EU, followed by Canada – 144 thsd tonnes,” the report says.
It is added that the volume of shipments from Canada increased more than three times compared to the previous year, although it remains at a rather low level. This is due to the fact that Canada mainly grows GM rapeseed varieties, while the EU has restrictions on the use of oil produced from them. Therefore, Canadian imports are mainly intended for biofuel production, APK-Inform added.
The Czech government is seeking support from other European Union countries for a new ammunition initiative after implementing a similar initiative in 2024, German N-TV reports.
“This is a matter of political will, and if many EU member states rejoin our initiative, we can achieve a lot for Ukraine,” Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said in an interview with the German news network (RND).
“We are currently looking at how we can finance the new ammunition initiative, and then we will see how many rounds of ammunition we can get for this money,” the Czech foreign minister added.
As reported, Defense Minister Jana Černohová announced the second project to purchase ammunition for Ukraine under the working title Initiative 2025 back in July last year. Deník N reported at the time that five companies would participate in the project: Czechoslovak Group, STV Group, Omnipol with Ompo Holding, Colt CZ Group SE, owned by Česká zbrojovka, and the DSS arms company.
Under the previous Czech ammunition initiative, Ukraine was provided with approximately half a million pieces of artillery ammunition. A total of 18 countries joined the initiative.
The number of commercial flights in the European Union in 2024 amounted to 6.7 million, which is 5.8% higher than the previous year, according to the EU Statistical Office. However, their number remained below the 7 million mark recorded in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
Irregular flights, such as charters, accounted for 8.7% of the total number of flights. The peak was in the summer months: in June, their share was 10.3%, in July – 10.7%, and in August – 10.1%.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport handled the largest number of flights last year (484 thousand). This is followed by Paris Charles de Gaulle (463 thousand) and Frankfurt am Main Airport (437 thousand). The top ten airports in terms of traffic also include Madrid, Barcelona, Munich, Rome, Athens, Vienna, and Dublin.
Eurostat’s definition of commercial air travel includes passenger, cargo, and mail flights.
Unemployment in the euro zone in December last year amounted to 6.3% compared to the all-time low of 6.2% a month earlier, the statistical office of the European Union said. Analysts had also expected 6.3%, according to Trading Economics. The November level, meanwhile, was revised up from 6.3%. By comparison, unemployment was 6.5% in December 2023.
The number of unemployed in the region rose by 96,000 in December from the previous month to a three-month high of 10.83 million.
The unemployment rate among young people (population under 25) fell to 14.8% from 14.9%.
The lowest unemployment rate among the largest eurozone countries was recorded in Germany (3.4%, the same as a month earlier), the highest – in Spain (10.6% vs. 10.7% in November). In France, unemployment in December increased by 0.1 percentage points and reached 7.8%, in Italy – increased by 0.3 p.p. to 6.2%.
In the European Union as a whole, unemployment stood at 5.9% last month, up from 5.8% in November. It stood at 6% in December 2023.
Earlier, the Experts Club think tank and Maxim Urakin released a video analysis on the state of the economy and debt in the world, see more on the YouTube channel:
The sugar market in Ukraine is stable, but with the opening of the European Union market in 2025, it opens up new prospects for Ukrainian producers, according to the analytical cooperative Pusk, created within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council.
The analysts reminded that since January 1, 2025, Ukrainian producers have gained access to the EU market thanks to new agreements on trade liberalization. This step has opened up the possibility for Ukraine to export large volumes of sugar to the European market without additional duties, which previously hindered the growth of supplies.
“The opening of the EU market is an important event for our industry. Currently, we are just starting to sign contracts for exports to Europe, but we expect a significant revival in this area in February-March. In January, we actively exported sugar to Turkey and African countries, but the European market is gradually becoming a priority,” the experts said.
According to them, the selling prices for sugar in Ukraine are 23-24.5 thousand UAH/t. This level is relatively stable, but seasonal factors and export expansion may lead to a gradual increase in prices in the near future.
“January-May is usually a period of seasonal growth in sugar prices. Probably, the current price level is one of the lowest, and the cost will continue to grow. The opening of the European market will also contribute to this dynamic,” experts predict.
In the coming months, the share of European supplies in the export structure will increase, which, in turn, will have a positive impact on the Ukrainian economy, Pusk summarized.
The EU will provide Ukraine with €35 billion in financial support in 2025, European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Platform X on Wednesday evening.
“The EU is providing Ukraine with financial support through the G7 ERA credit initiative and the Ukraine Facility in the amount of €35 billion for 2025,” Dombrovskis wrote.
