In July 2026, Ukraine’s steel mills produced 457,000 metric tons of steel, which is 21.3% less than in July of last year and 33.9% less than in June, when 691,000 metric tons were produced.
At the end of the month, Ukraine ranked 26th among 70 countries whose data is tracked by the World Steel Association (Worldsteel).
Overall, global steel production in July declined much less—by 0.3% year-over-year, to 149.2 million metric tons. Thus, the rate of decline in production in Ukraine significantly exceeded the global average. Worldsteel’s official data was published on August 24, 2026.
From January through July, Ukrainian steelmakers produced 4.023 million metric tons of steel, which is 5.6% less than during the same period in 2025. Based on the results of the first seven months, Ukraine ranks 24th in the global rankings.
The decline in July was particularly sharp compared to the previous month. While Ukrainian enterprises produced about 691,000 metric tons of steel in June, output fell by nearly 234,000 metric tons in July.
This also led to a decline in the country’s position in the global ranking: after seven months, Ukraine ranks 24th, while in July alone it dropped to 26th place.
By comparison, most of the largest producers increased their output in July. India increased production by 1.9%, the U.S. by 4.4%, South Korea by 6.4%, Turkey by 7%, Germany by 3%, and Vietnam by as much as 34.7%. China, on the other hand, reduced production by 3.6%. According to official data from Worldsteel, Russia increased its July production by 3.3%, to an estimated 5.7 million metric tons.
In the first seven months of 2026, global steel production totaled 1.081 billion metric tons, down 0.6% year-over-year. Ukraine, with a 5.6% decline, is also showing significantly weaker performance than the global market as a whole.
In 2025, Ukraine produced approximately 7.4 million metric tons of steel. According to World Steel’s latest annual table, the country ranked 23rd globally, down from 22nd in 2024.
The World Steel Association brings together leading steel producers, national and regional industry associations, and research organizations. The association’s members account for about 85% of global steel production.
According to Experts.news, the price of aluminum rose in the final trading session of the week following several days of heightened volatility amid risks to supplies from the Middle East, changes in Chinese exports, and expectations of a possible easing of U.S. tariffs on Canadian aluminum.
On the London Metal Exchange on August 21, the price of aluminum rose by approximately 1.2% to $3,242 per metric ton. Other market indicators throughout the day showed prices ranging from about $3,230 to $3,250 per metric ton.
Over the past month, the metal has risen in price by about 1.8%, and compared to a year ago, aluminum remains nearly 24% more expensive.
Despite the rise during recent trading sessions, the price has fallen significantly from its early June high. At that time, three-month aluminum on the LME climbed to $3,787.5 per metric ton—its highest level in about four years. By mid-August, the price had fallen to approximately $3,270 per metric ton.
The main reason for the June surge was disruptions in supplies from the Middle East amid the conflict with Iran. Before the situation escalated, Gulf states accounted for about 10% of global primary aluminum production. Additional problems arose at plants that relied on gas supplies.
However, China offset a significant portion of the shortfall. In the first half of the year, Chinese exports of aluminum alloys nearly doubled to 238,500 metric tons, while shipments of semi-finished products increased by 18% to 3.2 million metric tons. At the same time, China’s domestic demand remained relatively weak, while primary aluminum production remained at a level close to historic highs.
Chinese companies are currently operating at the limit of the national production capacity cap of 45 million metric tons per year set by Beijing, which restricts the possibility of further rapid production expansion.
Trade negotiations between the U.S. and Canada have become another factor affecting the market. According to Reuters, the parties have moved closer to an agreement that could potentially lower U.S. tariffs on Canadian aluminum from 50% to 25%. Such a decision could once again increase the appeal of Canadian aluminum shipments to the U.S. and reduce the volume of shipments to Europe.
As a result, the aluminum market is caught between two opposing trends: the recovery and growth of Chinese shipments are capping prices, while geopolitical risks, production constraints, and trade barriers are keeping them significantly higher than last year’s levels.
Earlier, the Experts Club think tank published a short video on global aluminum production from 1970 to 2024. According to the think tank’s analysis, in 2024, China produced about 43 million metric tons of primary aluminum, or approximately 60% of the global total. Next were India—about 4.2 million metric tons, Russia—3.8 million metric tons, Canada—3.3 million metric tons, and the UAE—2.7 million metric tons.
Watch a short Experts Club video on global aluminum production — https://youtube.com/shorts/cVVIjdMZL-w?si=dAUR8Purot4TxLsm
Farms of all categories produced 3.55 million metric tons of raw milk in January–July 2026, which is 12% less than during the same period in 2025, according to the Association of Milk Producers (AMP), citing preliminary data from the State Statistics Service.
In July, farms of all categories produced 563,700 metric tons of raw milk—0.5% less than in June and 15% less than in July 2025.
Agricultural enterprises produced 281,000 metric tons, which is 0.7% less than in June but 4.5% more than last year, while private households produced 282,700 metric tons, which is 0.2% less than in June and 28.3% less than in July 2025.
Over the first seven months of 2026, commercial dairy farms increased raw milk production by 5%—to 1.93 million metric tons—while private households reduced it by 27%—to 1.62 million metric tons.
“Raw milk production in Ukraine has declined due to the heat, as not all commercial dairy farms have been modernized and equipped with state-of-the-art ventilation systems that allow cows to avoid heat stress. The hot weather led to a 10–15% decline in raw milk production at many farms,” the AVM explained.
In January–July 2026, approximately 54% of raw milk was produced by agricultural enterprises in five regions: Poltava, Cherkasy, Khmelnytskyi, Chernihiv, and Vinnytsia.
The AVM noted that in January–July, agricultural enterprises accounted for 54% of raw milk production, while private farms accounted for 46%.
In 2026, Ukrnafta JSC will allocate an additional 2.5 billion hryvnia to protect its production infrastructure from shelling by Russia, which has intensified, said Bogdan Kukura, the company’s chairman of the board.
“We have shifted our priorities toward protecting facilities and ensuring the safety of equipment through underground construction. Therefore, this year we are allocating an additional 2.5 billion hryvnia to protect (production – IF-U) infrastructure; this is a huge investment,” he said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, the drilling plan for this year calls for 15 wells to be completed. At the same time, Kukura suggested that, thanks to a balanced drilling program, there is a possibility this figure could increase. (Last year, the company set a drilling record, bringing the total to 25 wells – IF-U).
“A total of 11 wells have already been drilled since the beginning of the year—including those drilled jointly with Ukrgazvydobuvannya. But for us, it is not so much the quantitative figure that matters as, first and foremost, economic efficiency, production rate, and the contribution to increasing output,” Kukura noted.
He noted that the collaboration between “Ukrnafta” and “Ukrgazdobycha” has proven effective, and together the companies have drilled three high-yield wells, each with a depth ranging from 4.5 to 5.6 km.
“This project has confirmed the effectiveness of combining the expertise of state-owned companies, so we plan to continue developing this kind of cooperation in the future,” emphasized the CEO of Ukrnafta.
Kukura also noted that the company has suspended the UKRNAFTA network expansion program in the east due to constant shelling by Russia, which “would render all modernization efforts futile,” and is currently focused on protecting its facilities there. At the same time, he noted that in the west of the country, UKRNAFTA is working as hard as possible to continue modernizing gas stations and is allocating part of the funds received from commercial operations toward this effort.
“Overall, we are trying to maintain a balanced allocation of revenue from both segments—production and commercial operations,” Kukura emphasized.
As previously reported, in this interview, Kukura stated that JSC “Ukrnafta’s” oil production losses for the first half of 2026 amounted to 150,000 metric tons—this includes both physical losses, i.e., oil that burned as a result of shelling, and the volume of oil not produced due to operational shutdowns. According to him, oil losses in the first half of 2026 significantly exceed the figures for the same period of the previous year.
In the first seven months of 2026, Russia destroyed 37 gas stations belonging to the Naftogaz Group; some of them were successfully restored, but the rest sustained critical damage and ceased operations.
The Ukrainian group of companies Kormotech, a manufacturer of dog and cat food, has become the first in Ukraine to receive international certification for compliance with the BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety. Following an audit by Bureau Veritas Certification Ukraine, the company received an “A” rating, Kormotech’s press service told the “Interfax-Ukraine” news agency.
“During the certification audit, it is not a single product or production line that is evaluated, but rather the company’s entire safety and quality management system. The ‘A’ rating we received demonstrates that our production processes comply with the requirements of the BRCGS standard and that the control systems we have implemented are effective,” said Serhiy Plichko, Lead Auditor at Bureau Veritas Certification Ukraine.
BRCGS is one of the most authoritative international standards for food safety and quality, establishing requirements for the entire production process: from supplier verification and raw material control to hygiene, product traceability, packaging, storage, and risk management. The standard is applied at over 22,000 production sites in more than 130 countries, and its requirements are recognized by leading international brands and retailers.
According to Kormotech’s Chief Operating Officer, Ihor Paranyak, obtaining the certificate was part of Kormotech’s long-term production strategy and the next stage in the development of the quality management system in Ukraine. Each year, Kormotech will undergo a re-audit and confirm its compliance with the standard as part of the regular certification cycle. The company already has experience operating in accordance with BRCGS requirements at its facility in Kedainiai, Lithuania, which has been certified under this standard since 2021.
According to Paranyak, preparing the Ukrainian facility was more challenging because the production facilities in Ukraine were established much earlier than the plant in Lithuania, which was designed from the outset to meet international requirements for organizing production flows.
“During the construction of the facility in Lithuania, we incorporated BRCGS requirements into the planning of production processes from the very beginning: the flow of raw materials and finished products, employee movement, sanitary zones, and risk control. The Ukrainian production facilities were built earlier, so to obtain certification, we had to adapt existing processes and systematically eliminate nonconformities. The A rating we received confirms that the company is capable of operating at a high international standard,” explains Paranyak.
Certification creates additional opportunities for cooperation with international retail chains and partners for whom BRCGS compliance is a mandatory or priority criterion for selecting manufacturers. At the same time, for Kormotech, this is first and foremost a tool for continuous process improvement, rather than a one-time formal audit.
“For several years in a row, we have maintained high BRCGS ratings at our facility in Lithuania. Now, our Ukrainian production facility has also achieved this same international standard. For us, this is an important signal: even amid a full-scale war, our Ukrainian team is capable of implementing complex global standards and meeting the demands of the global market,” concludes Paranyak.
Kormotech is a global family-owned company with Ukrainian roots that has been producing high-quality cat and dog food since 2003. The company operates three production facilities—two in Ukraine and one in Lithuania (another plant in that country is currently under construction). Total production capacity exceeds 102,000 metric tons per year, and the product range includes over 750 items. Kormotech is the market leader in Ukraine and ranks among the top 50 global pet food manufacturers; the company consistently ranks among the fastest-growing pet food brands. The group’s products are available in more than 50 countries worldwide, both under its own brands—Optimeal, Delickcious, CLUB 4 PAWS, My Love, Meow! Woof!—and under its partners’ private labels.
Bureau Veritas Certification Ukraine is the Ukrainian division of the international company Bureau Veritas, one of the world’s leaders in inspection, testing, and certification. The company has been operating in Ukraine since 2003 and provides conformity assessment services in industry, agriculture, construction, and other sectors.
PJSC “Zaporizhkox,” one of Ukraine’s largest producers of coke and coke-chemical products and a member of the Metinvest Group, reduced its blast furnace coke production by 2.97% in January–July of this year compared to the same period last year, down to 497,750 metric tons.
According to the company, 63.4 thousand metric tons of coke were produced in July, compared to 74.9 thousand metric tons the previous month and 78.9 thousand metric tons in July 2025.
“Among the main factors that contributed to the decline in production volumes in July 2026 compared to the same period in 2025 were a decrease in coal concentrate shipments due to the blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports caused by the aggressor country’s constant attacks on international merchant vessels, particularly those carrying raw materials for the Ukrainian metallurgical industry,” the press release explains.
As previously reported, in 2025, “Zaporizhkox” increased its output by 2.7% compared to 2024—to 898,300 metric tons, while in 2024, output rose by 2.1% to 874,700 metric tons from 856,800 metric tons in 2023.
“Zaporizhkox” operates a full technological cycle for the processing of coke-chemical products.
Metinvest is a vertically integrated mining and metallurgical group of companies. Its major shareholders are the SCM Group (71.24%) and Smart Holding (23.76%). Metinvest Holding LLC is the management company of the Metinvest Group.
