President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky believes that current good indicators of trade turnover between Ukraine and China can be significantly increased, and Ukraine will have something to offer China in terms of exporting high-tech products, products with a high degree of processing and high added value.
“Ukraine has significant potential for cooperation with China in various fields, comparable or even greater than that of many other Eastern European countries. We are interested in the successful realization of this potential. China confidently took the first line in the ranking of our largest trading partners: last year our trade turnover amounted to about $13 billion. And China takes leading positions among the main export partners of Ukraine. I am convinced that the current figures can be significantly increased,” he said in an interview with the Chinese news agency Xinhua.
The President of Ukraine said that Ukraine was one of the first countries to support the initiative of the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping “One Belt, One Road.”
“Ukraine has a unique geographical location – on the eastern border of the EU, on the way from Asia to Europe, as well as between the Black and Baltic Seas. We have the necessary economic and industrial potential for effective participation in this ambitious project,” he said.
Among the priorities of practical cooperation with China, Zelensky named the credit and investment, agro-industrial, engineering and transport sectors. “Ukraine has significant scientific and educational potential, rich culture. All this provides good opportunities for increasing the volume of trade and economic cooperation, enhancing bilateral humanitarian contacts and exchanges,” he said.
Zelensky said that in order to create better conditions for tourism development, Ukraine introduced a temporary visa-free regime for Chinese tourists from August 1.
“We will continue to try to improve the conditions for mutual trips of citizens of the two countries, so that they have better opportunities to get acquainted with the rich history and culture of Ukraine and China,” he said.
In his opinion, one of the steps towards cultural rapprochement between the two peoples should be the systematic training of specialists in Sinology in Ukraine, and now the Chinese language is being studied at Ukrainian secondary schools and universities, in Ukraine about 500 Sinologists annually receive diplomas of philology, there are qualified translators.
In January-August 2020 Ukraine reduced electricity export revenues by 18.3% (by $43.883 million) compared to the same period in 2019, to $196.325 million, in particular electricity was supplied at $7.66 million in August.
According to the State Customs Service, in the first eight months of this year electricity was exported to Hungary at $92.2 million, Poland for $56.586 million, Romania for $35.811 million and other countries for $11.728 million.
In addition, in January-August Ukraine imported electricity at the value of $111.340 million (at $1.336 million in August), including from Slovakia at $53.07 million, Hungary at $36.921 million, Belarus at $10.479 million and other countries at $10.87 million.
As reported, in 2019 Ukraine increased its electricity export revenue by 14.1% (by $46.825 million) compared to 2018, to $378.767 million, including $231.359 million for electricity export to Hungary, $84.584 million for export to Poland, $41.683 million for export to Moldova and $21.141 million for export to other countries.
In addition, in 2019 Ukraine electricity imports accounted for $121.401 million, including $43.115 million import value from Belarus, $36.336 million from Slovakia, $26.485 million from Hungary and $15.465 million from other countries.
In physical terms, in 2019 Ukraine’s electricity exports increased by 4.9% (by 303.6 million kWh) compared to 2018, to 6.469 billion kWh, and electricity imports amounted to 2.698 billion kWh.
Ukrainian enterprises reduced the import of copper and copper products in value terms by 6.1% in January-August 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, to $70.577 million.
According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, export of copper and copper products decreased 18.1%, to $47.687 million in the first eight months of 2020.
In August, copper and copper products were imported in the tune of $12.224 million, exported to the tune of $7.759 million.
In addition, Ukraine in January-August reduced the import of nickel and nickel products by 19.2% compared to the same period in 2019, to $47.1 million (in August amounted to $4.321 million), aluminum and aluminum products by 5%, to $248.561 million ($37.751 million). At the same time, the import of lead and lead products decreased 51.1%, to $4.358 million ($779,000), tin and tin products decreased 39.6%, to $1.421 million ($107,000), zinc and zinc products decreased by 35.6%, to $31.493 million ($3.791 million).
In January-August 2020, export of aluminum and aluminum products decreased 4.2% compared with January-August 2019, to $66.746 million (in August amounted to $8.302 million), lead and lead products fell by 9.6%, to $15.225 million ($2.256 million), nickel and nickel products decreased by 52%, to $1.67 million ($147,000). Zinc exports in January-August 2020 amounted to $56,000, while in the same period of 2019 amounted to $416,000 (in August no zinc was exported). The export of tin and tin products in January-August 2020 amounted to $90,000, while in the same period of 2019 amounted to $30,000 (the export amounted to $6,000 in August).
Ukrainian metal companies saw a fall of 18.3% in foreign currency revenues from exports of ferrous metals in January-August 2020 year-over-year, to $5.212 billion.
According to customs statistics published by the State Customs Service, the share of ferrous metals of total income from exports was 16.7% compared to 19.08% from a year ago.
In August 2020 alone, receipts from ferrous metal exports amounted to $633.953 million.
In January-August 2020, Ukraine decreased imports of similar products by 23.9%, to $652.238 million. In August 2020, the figure was $93.758 million.
Through the aforementioned period, Ukraine decreased metal products exports by 16.3%, to $597.324 million including August deliveries being $69.511 million.
During this period, imports of metal products fell by 24.3%, to $552.072 million, including August imports worth $81.931 million.
As reported, in 2019, Ukraine saw its forex earnings from ferrous metal exports fall by 12.1%, to $8.739 billion. Ukraine saw imports of these products decrease by 6.9%, to $1.252 billion.
Ukraine experienced a 6.1% decline in metal products exports, up to $1.042 billion. Metal imports grew by 13.6% last year, to $1.099 billion.
Export proceeds from the supply of oilseeds from Ukraine in the 2019/2020 marketing year (MY, September-August) increased by 10% and amounted to $ 7.32 billion, CEO of UkrAgroConsult Serhiy Feofilov has said.
“The economy of Ukraine from export of oilseeds in September-August received more than $ 7.3 billion, which is 10% more compared to the previous season. We see an 11% increase in sunflower oil (in terms of export earnings),” he said during the international conference Black Sea Grain & Oil Trade 2020 in Kyiv.
So, according to him, last season Ukraine exported sunflower oil for $ 4.95 billion (6.8 million tonnes against 6.06 million tonnes in the 2018/2019 MY).
The director general of UkrAgroConsult also said that export of grains in the first two months of the season (July-August) is practically at the level of the previous season.
“This shows that despite the consequences of the coronavirus crisis, export continues and develops,” he said.
Since the beginning of the new 2020/2021 marketing year (MY, July-June) and as of August 19, 2020, Ukraine exported 5.1 million tonnes of grain and legumes, which is 1.26 million tonnes less (due to corn) than on this date in the past MY.
According to the information and analytical portal of the Ukrainian agro-industrial complex, 3.03 million tonnes of wheat, 1.56 million tonnes of barley and 502,000 tonnes of corn (1.18 million tonnes less) was exported to date.
As of August 19 of this year, 28,400 tonnes of flour was also exported.
As reported, in the 2019/2020 MY Ukraine exported a record 57.2 million tonnes of grain, legumes and flour, which is 13.5% more than in the previous MY.
