Business news from Ukraine

FLIXBUS OPENS THREE NEW LINES FROM UKRAINE TO POLAND AND CZECH REPUBLIC

The bus operator FlixBus will open three new routes on November 4 and on November 5: Kyiv – Warsaw – Szczecin (both are in Poland), Chernivtsi – Warsaw and Lviv – Ostrava (the Czech Republic).
As Managing Director of FlixBus in Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic States Michal Lehman said at a press conference on Tuesday, route number 3222 Kyiv-Warsaw-Szczecin, which will be operated jointly with private entrepreneur Serhiy Sherstiuk, will also pass through the following cities: Zhytomyr, Rivne, Lutsk, Lublin, Lodz, Poznan and Gorzow Wielkopolski. The trip frequency is twice a week.
Route 3241 Chernivtsi – Warsaw (partner – IV-AUTO) will pass through Kolomyia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv and Lublin. The frequency is three times a week.
Route CUA025 Lviv – Ostrava (partner – ACIK, Poland) will pass through Krakow, Katowice and Bohumin. Its frequency is twice a week.
“The first two lines are fully compliant with the green FlixBus standards. The third line will be fully operated by ACIK, but we will also sell tickets for these trips. There are separate seats on ACIK buses, which are marked with a green sticker, which will be assigned to FlixBus passengers,” he said.
According to him, to date, the FlixBus network connects 16 cities of Ukraine from 12 regions with 48 cities in Europe (six countries).

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UKRAINE REDUCES SCRAP METAL IMPORT BY 69%

Ukrainian enterprises in January-September of this year reduced export of scrap metal by 38.1% compared to the same period last year, to 25,158 tonnes (40,633 tonnes were exported in January-September 2019).
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service, in terms of money, scrap exports fell by 42.7%, to $6.458 million.
In January, 2,865 tonnes of scrap metal were exported, in February some 8,014 tonnes, in March 493 tonnes, in April 256 tonnes, and in May 4,861 tonnes, in June 316 tonnes, in July 402 tonnes, in August 3,391 tonnes, and in September 4,560 tonnes
At the same time, in January-September of this year, the country reduced imports of scrap metal in natural terms by 68.8% compared to the same period last year, to 13,575 tonnes. In monetary terms, this indicator decreased by 41.6%, to $15.488 million.
In addition, the metal enterprises of Ukraine in January-September 2020 imported 1,602 tonnes of ferrous products obtained by direct reduction of iron ore (HS code 7203) – hot briquetted iron (HBI), which is a substitute for pig iron and scrap metal in the amount of $481,000, whereas in January-September 2019 some 1,462 tonnes for $478,000 was exported.

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PREMIUMS ON GREEN CARD POLICIES IN UKRAINE DOWN BY 34.3%

Accrued insurance premiums under Green Card international insurance agreements signed by the member companies of the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) in January-August 2020 decreased by 34.3% compared to the same period in 2019, to UAH 781.3 million.
The MTIBU reported on the website the number of Green Card agreements concluded during this period fell by 45.62%, to 406,600.
At the same time, the amount of compensations paid on claims increased by 25.72%, to EUR12.2 million, while the number of claims paid by 14.7%, to 4,141.
The MTIBU is the only association of insurers that provide compulsory insurance of civil liability of land vehicles’ owners for damage caused to third parties.

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THE INDEPENDENCE DAY OF UKRAINE WILL BE CELEBRATED IN A BIG WAY NEAR KYIV

On August, 22, 23 and 24 Ancient Kyiv in the Principality of Kyivan Rus («Kyivan Rus Park») invites to a grandiose celebration of the Independence Day of Ukraine. A bright show-program on historical theme, horse-trick performances, Slavic amusements, master-classes, tasty dishes prepared on open fire, horse riding and much more from the life of Kyivan Rus will be waiting for the guests.
Ancient Kyiv opens at 10:00. The program starts at 14:00.
The ticket price: a full adult ticket – 225 UAH, for pensioners and students – 150 UAH, for schoolchildren – 80 UAH, for preschool children – for free.
Ancient Kyiv in the «Kyivan Rus Park» is located in Kyiv region, Obukhiv district, the vill. Kopachiv.
Details on the website www.parkkyivrus.com
The Interfax subscribers can save money with the “openbusiness-20” promo code for a 20%-discount for a full price adult ticket to the Principality of Kyivan Rus:
– by previous order by tel.: +38 044 461-99-37, +38 050 385-20-35
– or at the cash desk at the entrance to the «Kyivan Rus Park».

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EUROPEAN INVESTMENT BANK TO ISSUE EUR 55 MLN TO UKRAINE, GEORGIA, MOLDOVA

The European Investment Bank (EIB) will provide Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova with EUR 55 million through ProCredit Bank in the respective countries to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) within mitigating the effects of the economic shock, the EIB’s website reports.
“As part of the overall response to COVID-19, the operation will support the financial intermediaries with temporary emergency measures to facilitate the provision of liquidity to SMEs and midcaps and thereby contribute to mitigating the impact of the economic shock,” the report says.
ProCredit Bank in Ukraine was founded in 2001. At the beginning of 2020, its sole shareholder was ProCredit Holding (100% of the shares).
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, as of May 1, 2020 ProCredit Bank ranked 14th among 75 banks operating in the country in terms of total assets (UAH 25.646 billion).

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UKRAINE AND TUKEY STILL PREPARING FTA AGREEMENT

Ukraine and Turkey intend to prepare a Free Trade Area (FTA) agreement for the meeting of the High Level Strategic Council of Ukraine and Turkey in 2020, Foreign Minister of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba has said. “We are really determined to hold the next meeting of the Strategic Council of our presidents this year and want to fill it with maximum content. And, of course, the FTA agreement is one of those tasks that should already be consecrated by our leaders,” Kuleba said after a joint meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister at a press conference in Antalya on Friday.
The foreign minister said that at the moment Ukraine is waiting for a certain positional document from the Turkish side in order to continue consultations on this issue.
“Of course, the potential of our trade is phenomenal. I can sincerely tell you that Turkish goods can be found in any store of any region of Ukraine… Unfortunately, Ukrainian goods are not yet represented on the Turkish market, but we also have a lot of things, what Turkish consumers and buyers will benefit from. And we can open this potential, achieve a fair and mutually beneficial balance in trade, and bring our trade to a new horizon by signing the FTA agreement. And today, my colleague and I agreed that we will apply maximum efforts in order to positively resolve this issue,” the Ukrainian minister said.
According to him, Ukrainian and Turkish experts involved in trade will continue negotiations on this issue, but political leaders, ministers of foreign affairs and trade of both countries will be ready to take part in them to settle the issues that will seem insoluble at the expert level.
“There is political will of both sides now to resolve all issues and reach a result, I emphasize, in the interests of business and economies, both Ukrainian and Turkish,” Kuleba added.

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