The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) predicts that export of vegetable oil from Ukraine in the 2019/20 agricultural year (September-August) will be 6.12 million tonnes, which is 90,000 tonnes less than in 2018/19 agri-year (6.21 million tonnes).
According to the May report, forecast for oilseed crushing for 2019/20 agri-year were improved by 150,000 tonnes, to 16.8 million tonnes.
USDA said that next agri-year sunflower seed production in Ukraine could decrease by 200,000 tonnes year-over-year, to 14.8 million tonnes, meal – by 123,000 tonnes, to 5.99 million tonnes and oil – by 129,000 tonnes, to 6.24 million tonnes.
Export of sunflower seeds in 2019/20 agri-year should grow by 50%, to 150,000 tonnes, meal – by 6%, to 4.7 million tonnes and oil – by 3.4%, to 5.6 million tonnes.
Belarus will raise duties on oil and oil products exported outside the Eurasian Economic Union’s customs territory on May 1. The sizes of the duties were confirmed by Government Resolution No. 262 of April 25, which has been published on the National Legal Internet Portal. Under the document, the duty on crude oil will grow from $97.40 to $104.60 per tonne, that on straight-run gasoline will rise from $53.50 to $57.50 per tonne, and that on commercial gasoline will grow from $29.20 to $31.30 per tonne.
The duty on light and medium distillates will rise from $29.20 to $31.30 per tonne. The same rate will apply to diesel, benzene, toluene, xylol, and lubricants and other oils.
Belarus last raised export duties on oil and oil products on April 1. Belarus has been aligning its export duties on oil and oil products with Russia’s since 2010 in light of its duty-free imports of oil from Russia. In accordance with EAEU agreements, all export duties on oil and oil products have remained in the Belarusian budget since 2015.
Ukraine last year cut honey export by 27%, to 49,500 tonnes and lost positions in the global rating list of honey exporters, national consultant to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Ann Burka has said.
“The last 2018 year can be called a watershed year for the Ukrainian honey market. In fact, until last year, the industry, which showed annual growth in honey exports, faced a series of challenges in 2018. The search for solutions to some of them continues to this day. On one side, vast amounts of killed bees, affecting all regions, and on the other side, price battles that unfolded in the second half of the year, which “contributed” to a 27% reduction in honey exports from Ukraine and led to a loss of market share in several European countries and the United States,” she wrote on her page in the Facebook social network.
According to the FAO consultant, as a result, Ukraine dropped in the world ranking of exporters of these products from third place in 2017 (share 10%) to fifth place with a share of 7% in 2018.
“And while Ukraine was losing its position in the foreign market, competitors were actively increasing their export volumes, occupying a vacant niche. Export volumes from India in 2018 increased 10% compared with 2017, Mexico doubled, Argentina also saw growth,” Burka said.
She added that in general, the volume of globla trade in honey in 2018 decreased 3% in kind and 7% in value, reaching 689,000 tonnes, or $2.23 billion.
“Icing on the cake: according to ITC estimates, the unrealized export potential of honey on a global scale is estimated at $1.6 billion, so, Ukraine has room to grow,” the FAO consultant said.
Ukraine in January-March 2019 increased electricity exports by 4.1% (by 66.2 million kWh) compared to the same period in 2018, to 1.662 billion kWh, the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry has told Interfax-Ukraine. Electricity supplies from the Burshtyn TPP Energy Island in the direction of Hungary, Slovakia and Romania increased by 0.4% (by 2.7 million kWh), to 1.027 billion kWh.
Electricity supplies to Poland decreased by 3.1% (by 12.9 million kWh), to 410.4 million kWh.
Electricity supplies to Moldova amounted to 224.6 million kWh, which is 53.6% (78.4 million kWh) more than in January-March 2018.
For the three months of 2018 and 2019, Ukrainian electricity was not exported to Belarus and Russia.
In addition, in the first quarter of this year, Ukraine imported 5.9 million kWh of electricity from the Russian Federation and Belarus compared to 8.9 million kWh in January-March 2018.
