The record daily volume of electricity imports to Ukraine in January was 41.987 GWh, the Ministry of Energy reported on Sunday in Telegram.
“This support was made possible by the expansion of transmission capacity: in January, the power limit for imports from the EU was set at 2,450 MW, which is an absolute record since Ukraine joined the ENTSO-E network,” the ministry said.
It is noted that this helped to maintain the system and reduce the deficit amid Russian attacks and severe frosts.
As reported by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as of January 16, electricity consumption in Ukraine was 18 GW, while the capacity to provide it was “11 GW or so.”
Tourists spent a total of 3.08 billion nights in hotels, hostels, and rented apartments in the European Union in 2025, according to preliminary data from the EU statistical office.
This is 2% (61.5 million) higher than in 2024 and is a record. Compared to pre-pandemic 2019, the growth was 7.2%.
At the same time, the number of overnight stays by foreign guests increased by 46.1 million last year, while for EU residents this figure rose by 15.4 million. The former account for 48.6% of the total, while the latter account for 51.4%.
An increase in tourist activity was observed in all EU countries except two. The most significant growth in tourist numbers was recorded in Malta (+9.9%) and Poland (+7%), while the number of overnight stays in Romania fell by 1.4% and in Ireland by 1.8%.
The most popular tourist destinations for foreigners were Spain (330 million overnight stays), Italy (264 million), France (150 million), and Greece (131 million).
Gold and silver prices hit new highs on Monday amid increased demand for safe-haven assets due to the situation surrounding Greenland.
Traders fear that increased pressure from US President Donald Trump, who is laying claim to Greenland, will provoke a large-scale trade war between the US and Europe.
On Saturday, Trump announced that he would impose 10% tariffs on a number of European countries that support Denmark and Greenland starting in February. From June 1, 2026, the tariffs for these countries will be 25% and will remain in effect “until an agreement is reached on the full purchase of Greenland by Washington,” Trump said.
European countries are ready for a coordinated response to the introduction of US tariffs, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. According to the Financial Times, EU countries are considering imposing tariffs on US goods worth €93 billion or a series of restrictions on American companies.
The trade tensions surrounding Greenland are different from last year’s situation with the US imposing large-scale tariffs, notes Charu Chanan, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets in Singapore.
“The use of tariff threats within NATO is a kind of blow to confidence that could provoke a more persistent risk premium on asset values,” she says.
The spot price of gold rose 1.6% to $4,670.47 per ounce by 9:30 a.m. on Monday, while silver rose 3.4% to $93.1755 per ounce. During the session, the price of gold rose to a record $4,690.59 per ounce, and silver to $94.1213 per ounce.
“Geopolitical risks are intensifying,” said Kyle Rodda, an analyst at Capital.com Inc. in Melbourne. “New trade uncertainty is clouding the growth outlook, and US foreign policy is undermining confidence in the dollar. This is the perfect set of conditions for gold and silver prices to rise.”
US stock index futures are down 0.8-1.3% on Monday. Trading activity on the futures market is weak as US exchanges are closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Reference: The Experts Club analytical center previously released a video analysis of the twenty largest silver-producing countries and their competition for leadership in 1971-2024 – https://www.youtube.com/shorts/HvKK-YET8vs
The Experts Club also previously presented an analysis of the world’s leading gold-producing countries — https://youtube.com/shorts/DWbzJ1e2tJc?si=BywddHO-JFWFqUFA
In its January review, the International Grains Council (IGC, headquartered in London) raised its forecast for global grain harvest in 2025/26 (July-June) by 31 million tons to a record 2 billion 461 million tons.
This is primarily due to improved forecasts for corn harvests, mainly in the US and China, and barley harvests in Canada and Australia.
In the 2024/25 season, the harvest amounted to 2 billion 238 million tons.
“Thanks to an increase in yield (by 5%) and an increase in acreage (by 1%), the grain harvest in the 2025/26 season will break all existing records. In addition to record corn and wheat harvests, barley and sorghum harvests are also expected to reach multi-year highs,” the review says.
The estimate for grain consumption has been raised by 16 million tons to 2.416 billion tons. Carryover stocks at the end of the season are forecast at 634 million tons, which is almost 16 million tons higher than the previous estimate.
Global trade this season is estimated at 446 million tons, which is 4 million tons higher than the previous forecast and 5% higher on an annualized basis.
The wheat harvest forecast has risen to 842 million tons, which is 12 million tons higher than the previous estimate. In the 2024/25 season, the harvest amounted to 801 million tons. “It is expected that in the 2026/27 season, the area sown with wheat will decrease slightly, and assuming average yields in the next season, the harvest is preliminarily forecast to decline by about 2%,” the review says. “As demand has reached a new peak, a slight reduction in global stocks is expected, but aggregate stocks in major exporting countries will remain at comfortable levels.”
The corn harvest forecast for the 2025/26 season has been raised to 1.313 billion tons from the previous 1.298 billion tons. Last season, 1.238 billion tons were harvested.
The estimate for global rice production has remained virtually unchanged at 543 million tons. Taking into account a slight decline in consumption, stocks at the end of the 2025/26 season will increase by 2 million tons. Expectations for global trade volume in calendar year 2026 have declined slightly, but at 60 million tons (a 2% increase), it will still be a record high, the review notes.
Earlier, the Experts Club analytical center presented a video analysis of global grain production by leading agricultural countries in the period 1991-2024. The video is available here: https://youtube.com/shorts/2XwiBWf9GrM?si=F9-QsXbWRl2jqV8M
Silver prices hit historic highs amid growing demand for safe-haven assets and expectations of monetary policy easing in the US. According to Reuters, the spot price of silver rose to a record $86.22 per troy ounce on January 12.
At the same time, silver futures on the US market rose above $89 per ounce during trading on January 13, Investopedia reported. A number of industry publications noted that at certain points during the session, silver rose by about 5%, reflecting the metal’s increased volatility. Analysts surveyed by Reuters do not rule out a further movement of prices towards $90 per ounce if the current combination of factors supporting precious metals remains in place.
Reference: The Experts Club analytical center previously released a video analysis of the twenty largest silver-producing countries and their competition for leadership in 1971-2024 – https://www.youtube.com/shorts/HvKK-YET8vs
Agro-Region agricultural holding has completed its 2025 harvest campaign with a record corn yield of 9.64 tons per hectare, according to a Facebook post by the holding’s press service.
Agro-Region stated that the yield indicators for the 2025 season exceeded the planned forecasts. One of the production units, AR Bozna, broke its own yield record and the record of other units, achieving a yield of 11.87 tons/ha.
Yuriy Lysak, chief agronomist of Agro-Region, recalled that 2025 was marked by cool weather conditions: spring started late, and all crops, especially corn, did not receive the necessary amount of heat. That is why the harvest started with a delay of almost two weeks. Despite the increased moisture content of corn, which affected the productivity of elevators, the harvest results, according to the expert, were “truly impressive.”
“Thanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as the coordinated work of the agronomic, engineering, and elevator teams, we were able to achieve high results,” Lysak summed up.
Agro-Region agricultural holding owns a land bank of 39,000 hectares in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, and Khmelnytskyi regions. It specializes in crop production. It consists of 11 companies, which are united into four crop clusters. It has two elevators: Boryspil with a capacity of 73,000 tons and Myropil with a capacity of 52,000 tons.
Agro-Region’s annual harvest of grain and oilseeds is 200,000 tons.
In April 2021, the Swedish company Lobiu Sala AB, owned by former Ukrainian Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavičius, received permission from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine to purchase the Swedish company Agro Region Stockholm Holding, which manages the Agro-Region group of companies in Ukraine.
