In January–July of this year, Ukraine reduced its exports of manganese ore by 93.4% compared to the same period last year, to 2,977 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, exports fell by 92.5% in monetary terms, to $491 thousand.
The main exports were to Slovakia (94.30% of shipments in monetary terms) and Poland (5.70%).
During this period, there were no imports of manganese ore.
As reported, in January 2024, Ukraine exported 44,903 tons of manganese ore worth $6.563 million to the US, breaking a two-year hiatus in exports to foreign markets. In February-December 2024, there were no exports of manganese ore.
At the same time, in 2024, the country imported 84,293 tons worth $18.302 million from Ghana (98.85%), Brazil (0.99%), and Belgium (0.11%). In October-November, there were no imports.
Ukraine did not export manganese ore in 2022 and 2023, while in 2021 it exported 770 tons worth $89 thousand.
In addition, it was reported that the Pokrovsky Mining and Processing Plant (PGZK, formerly Ordzhonikidze Mining and Processing Plant), which is part of the Privat Group, and the Marganetsky Mining and Processing Plant (MGZK, both in Dnipropetrovsk region) stopped mining and processing raw manganese ore in late October-early November 2023, while NZF and ZZF stopped smelting ferroalloys. Later, ferroalloy plants resumed production to a small extent.
Manganese ore is mined and enriched in Ukraine by the Pokrovsky and Marganets Mining and Enrichment Plants.
The consumers of manganese ore are ferroalloy enterprises.
In January-July of this year, Ukraine increased its exports of processed pig iron in physical terms by 55% compared to the same period last year, to 1 million 38.757 thousand tons from 669.982 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, during the period in question, exports of pig iron in monetary terms increased by 62% to $411.316 million.
Exports were mainly to the US (80.18% of shipments in monetary terms), Italy (10.16%), and Turkey (4.17%).
In the first seven months of the year, the country imported 29,000 tons worth $55,000 from Brazil (68.52%) and Germany (31.48%), while in January-July 2024, 15 tons of pig iron worth $35,000 were imported.
As reported, on March 12 of this year, in accordance with a decision by President Donald Trump, the US began imposing a 25% tariff on imports of Ukrainian steel products, except for pig iron.
In 2024, Ukraine reduced exports of processed pig iron in physical terms by 3.4% compared to 2023, to 1 million 290.622 thousand tons, and in monetary terms by 6.1%, to $500.341 million. Exports were mainly to the US (72.64% of shipments in monetary terms), Turkey (8.03%), and Italy (7.30%).
In 2024, the country imported 38 tons of pig iron worth $90 thousand from Germany, while in the same period of 2023, it imported 154 tons of pig iron worth $156 thousand.
In January-July of this year, Ukraine reduced exports of titanium-containing ores and concentrates in physical terms by 93.6% compared to the same period last year, to 277 tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, in monetary terms, exports of titanium-containing ores and concentrates decreased by 93.1% to $496 thousand.
The main exports were to Uzbekistan (35.61% of shipments in monetary terms), Turkey (35.01%), and Egypt (29.38%).
In addition, Ukraine imported 24 tons of titanium-containing ores worth $39 thousand from China (94.87%, deliveries took place in January) and Uzbekistan (5.13%, deliveries took place in May) in the first seven months of 2025.
In addition, in the first seven months of 2025, Ukraine exported 2,466 tons of niobium, tantalum, vanadium, and zirconium ores and concentrates worth $3.954 million to Spain (48.90%), Germany (24.53%), and Italy (17.19%). At the same time, the country imported 294 tons of such ores worth $774 thousand from Spain (67.35%), China (17.16%), and the Czech Republic (12.13%).
As reported, in 2024, Ukraine reduced exports of titanium-containing ores in physical terms by 37.5% compared to the previous year, to 7,284 thousand tons. In monetary terms, exports of titanium-containing ores and concentrates decreased by 40% to $11.654 million. The main exports were to Turkey (62.82% of shipments in monetary terms), Egypt (7.38%), and Poland (6.93%).
Last year, Ukraine imported 314 tons of titanium-containing ore worth $492 thousand from China (87.78%), Vietnam (6.11%), and Senegal (also 6.11%).
At the same time, experts pointed to discrepancies in statistics on exports of titanium-containing ores. However, in response to a request from Interfax-Ukraine, the State Customs Service (DMS) of Ukraine stated that complete data on exports of titanium raw materials is not provided due to restrictions on the volume of export and import operations with military and dual-use goods, which are reflected in aggregate form under “Other goods.”
They explained that, in particular, deliveries of titanium-containing ores from companies differ from the SCS data.
“We would like to inform you that these deliveries are included in the statistical exports from Ukraine, but are not reflected in the foreign trade statistics published by the State Customs Service (…) under the UKTZED commodity code 2614 ”Titanium ores and concentrates” due to the following (…) In accordance with the provisions (…), when protecting data for confidentiality purposes, any information considered confidential shall be reported in full at the next higher level of product data aggregation,” the State Customs Service explained in its response to the agency.
It was clarified that information on customs clearance and movement across the customs border of Ukraine of goods subject to export control is included in the list of information containing official information in the State Customs Service, in accordance with the relevant order.
In Ukraine, titanium-containing ores are currently mined mainly by PJSC United Mining and Chemical Company (UMCC), which manages the Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant (VGMK, Dnipropetrovsk region) and the Irshansk Mining and Processing Plant (IGZK, Zhytomyr region), as well as LLC Mezhyrichensky GZK and LLC Valky-Ilmenit (both LLCs are located in Irshansk, Zhytomyr region). In addition, the production and commercial firm Velta (Dnipro) built a mining and processing plant at the Birzulivskoye deposit with a capacity of 240,000 tons of ilmenite concentrate per year.
Soybean exports from Ukraine in the 2025-2026 marketing year (MY, July-June) may decrease by more than a third and amount to about 2.7 million tons due to the expected reduction in crop production, the possible impact of export duties, and the continued attractiveness of processing, according to the information and analytical agency APK-Inform.
Experts recalled that Ukraine exported 3.97 million tons of soybeans during September-July 2024-2025 MY, which is 28% more than in the same period last year and set a new record for the season.
“The significant increase in export rates was achieved primarily thanks to the record harvest of this crop in the country in 2024, as well as attractive prices and geographical proximity to key global importers,” analysts explained.
At the same time, in their opinion, the record pace of soybean shipments in the summer may be stimulated by the expected introduction of a 10% duty on soybeans from September 2025, if the Ukrainian president signs the relevant bill.
Among the top buyers of Ukrainian soybeans in the current season, experts named Turkey (968,600 tons, up 39% from the previous season), Egypt (673,000 tons, down 31%), and the Netherlands (546,000 tons, up 2.7 times).
“In total, in the 2024/25 season, soybean exports from Ukraine could reach about 4.1-4.2 million tons (+26%), which could be a new record for the industry,” APK-Inform concluded.
The Uzbek Industrial Metals Plant has made the first export delivery of rhenium metal with a purity of 99.9%.
The contract was concluded with the Estonian company VLCor Baltic OU, a supplier of raw materials for the foundry, aerospace and machine-building industries. This is the first time Uzbekistan has exported this strategic metal.
Rhenium is one of the rarest and most expensive elements of the periodic table. It is used in the production of heat-resistant superalloys, in particular for jet engine turbines, as well as in the petrochemical and electronics industries. The main consumers of rhenium in the world are the United States, Europe and China.
The global rhenium market is about 50-60 tons per year, with prices ranging from $2000 to $4000 per kilogram, depending on the purity level and form of delivery. The largest producers are Chile, the United States, Kazakhstan, and China.
The emergence of Uzbekistan among the suppliers may to some extent change the situation in the niche market, which is characterized by high dependence on a limited number of sources and unstable pricing.
According to UzCTM, the technology for producing rhenium by hydrogen reduction of ammonium perenate was mastered in 2021. In 2025, the company plans to produce 3 tons of rhenium metal.
UzKTM’s total exports in the first half of the year amounted to $21.3 million, up 118% year-on-year.
By the end of the year, the plant also plans to produce 842 tons of molybdenum, 96 tons of tungsten, 5 tons of selenium and 1 ton of tellurium. Exports are expected to account for more than $50 million of the planned $70 million in revenue.
Earlier, First Deputy Minister of Mining and Geology of Uzbekistan Omonullo Nasriddinhodzhayev said that in 2024-2028, UzKTM would implement more than 70 projects in the field of critical minerals. The total cost of the program is estimated at $1.6 billion.
Uzbekistan has deposits of more than 30 strategic metals, including lithium, molybdenum, tungsten, germanium, vanadium, graphite, and titanium. The country’s government expects that the development of deep processing in this area will help ensure sustainable export positions in the markets of rare and rare earth elements.
As a reminder, in April 2024, Uzbekistan and the EU signed a memorandum of understanding on the development of sustainable value chains in the field of critical raw materials. This is expected to help Uzbekistan develop its mining industry, and for the EU, guarantee access to minerals such as copper and molybdenum.
In September 2024, Uzbekistan also signed a memorandum on critical minerals with the United States.
You can learn more about the prospects for rare earth mining in Ukraine in the video: https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=uhebfpywpqc&t
Ukrainian farmers reduced sugar beet acreage in 2025 by 15.4% compared to last year, to 220,000 hectares, according to First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky.
“The Ministry of Agrarian Policy’s estimate (of sugar beet acreage – IF-U) stands at 220,000 hectares, compared to 259,000 hectares last year. We have a guaranteed 15% decline,” he said at a meeting of the Trend&Hedge Club.
When asked whether the European Union’s trade policy had influenced this situation, Vysotsky noted that this was definitely the reason for the decline in production of this crop.
He stressed that Ukrainian processors were very disappointed with the sugar supply volumes to the EU announced in spring 2025, which amounted to 67,000 tons for 2025. Currently, this supply threshold has been raised to 107,000 tons. However, at its peak, supplies to the EU reached 473,000 tons, so when comparing the allocated quota with the peak supply volume, the difference is obvious.
“In fact, the renaissance of the sugar industry in Ukraine was due to duty-free trade with the EU. Then, thanks to the scale and turnover, our producers began to enter other export markets, but the starting point was access to the European market, which has the highest margins. There are no alternatives in terms of margins,” the deputy minister said.
Vysotsky did not rule out that the area under sugar beet cultivation would continue to decline in the coming years. At the same time, he noted that all decisions on this matter would be made by producers taking into account export prospects, particularly to the EU.
