Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

28.4% of Ukrainians prefer Ukrainian medicines

According to a survey conducted by research company Active Group and the Experts Club analytical center in early February, 28.4% of Ukrainians prefer Ukrainian medicines.

According to Alexander Pozniy, CEO and co-founder of Active Group, 33.4% of respondents more often choose imported medicines, while for 38.2% of respondents, the country of origin of the drug is irrelevant.

“For manufacturers, this means that competition is based on reputation, proven effectiveness, and stability of supply, and Ukrainian brands can strengthen their position through quality and clear communication,” said Alexander Pozniy, CEO and co-founder of Active Group.

According to Experts Club founder Maxim Urakin, “the fact that almost a third of consumers choose domestic drugs shows the importance of accessibility and trust in quality in the domestic market.”

The study was conducted on the SunFlowerSociology online panel on a representative sample on February 11-12, 2026. The survey involved 1,000 respondents from a representative sample in all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territories.

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76% of Ukrainians consider electronic prescriptions convenient, according to a study

According to the results of a survey conducted by the research company Active Group and the Experts Club analytical center in early February and presented at the Interfax-Ukraine press center, 31.4% of respondents called electronic prescriptions “very convenient,” 44.1% called them “rather convenient,” 18.7% called them “rather inconvenient,” and 5.9% called them “very inconvenient.”

“Digital tools gain support when they save time and really simplify access to medicines,” said Experts Club founder Maxim Urakin.

“Negative attitudes among some users are usually associated with practical failures and varying levels of digital literacy, and this needs to be taken into account when fine-tuning the service,” said Alexander Pozniy, CEO and co-founder of Active Group.

The study was conducted on the SunFlowerSociology online panel using a representative sample on February 11-12, 2026. The survey involved 1,000 respondents from a representative sample in all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territories.

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Half of Ukrainians choose medicines based on a balance between price and effectiveness

According to the results of a survey conducted by the research company Active Group and the Experts Club analytical center and published in the Interfax-Ukraine press center, when buying medicines, 50.5% of respondents primarily focus on the combination of price and effectiveness, 25.0% on price, and 24.5% on effectiveness.

The survey was conducted online on February 11-12, 2026, with 1,000 respondents (18+).

“The choice of ‘price plus effectiveness’ reflects the desire to get results, but within a limited budget,” said Experts Club founder Maxim Urakin.

“Consumers are becoming more rational, and this intensifies competition among manufacturers for trust and affordability,” said Active Group CEO and co-founder Alexander Pozniy.
The study was conducted on the SunFlowerSociology online panel using a representative sample on February 11-12, 2026. The survey involved 1,000 respondents from a representative sample in all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territories.

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China retained its leadership among Ukraine’s trading partners in 2025 – Experts Club

Trade in Ukrainian goods in 2025 remained highly concentrated and with a pronounced import bias, according to a study by the Experts Club analytical center on the top 50 trading partners as of December 31, 2025.

As noted in the study, the top ten countries account for about two-thirds of total trade, with China alone accounting for almost a fifth of turnover. Experts Club founder Maxim Urakin emphasizes: “The overall picture is consistent with the aggregated statistics for 2025: Ukraine’s imports are estimated at about $84.8 billion, exports at about $40.3 billion, and trade turnover at about $125.1 billion.”

China has become Ukraine’s largest partner in terms of trade turnover in the TOP-50 sample – $21.04 billion, with imports of $19.23 billion and exports of $1.82 billion, resulting in a negative balance of $17.41 billion. Urakin believes that “there will be no quick solutions to balance the trade deficit with China without strengthening Ukraine’s industrial export positions” and suggests focusing on localizing part of the supply chains for Ukrainian needs, contract manufacturing, and expanding agricultural and food exports with deeper processing.

Poland ranked second in terms of trade turnover with $13.02 billion, followed by Germany with $9.06 billion, Turkey with $8.95 billion, and the US with $5.69 billion. Commenting on the European direction, Urakin draws attention to the risks of regulation: “The risk factor here is not so much economic as regulatory and political… the issue of quotas and restrictions periodically returns to the agenda.” In his opinion, the key to expanding presence in the EU market is “quality of entry” — standards, traceability, certification, and integration into value chains.

The study also notes the role of markets where Ukraine has a positive trade balance, as well as the importance of trade hubs and logistics. In particular, among the areas that could potentially provide rapid growth with reduced logistics costs and stable maritime routes, the countries where exports already exceed imports stand out, as well as European logistics hubs through which part of Ukraine’s flows pass.

Speaking about the prospects for 2026, Experts Club highlights as key factors the conditions of access to EU markets, institutional agreements with regional partners, and logistics, including the security of sea routes. “The most applicable growth points for Ukraine are a combination of markets with an already positive balance and instruments that reduce barriers: agreements, standardization, and logistics,” Urakin concluded.

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Active Group and Experts Club presented study entitled “Ukrainian Medicine After Reforms”

More than 15% of Ukrainians noticed that the cost of medicines increased by more than 50% during 2024-2025, while 52% of Ukrainians noted a 20%-50% increase in the cost of medicines.

According to Alexander Pozniy, director of the research company Active Group, this is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by Active Group and the Experts Club analytical center in early February and presented to Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.

Pozniy noted that a third of those surveyed said that medicine prices had remained almost unchanged, while 2.6% said that they had even decreased.

“In general, it can be noted that the cost of medicines has risen quite significantly, and this is noted by almost the absolute majority (of respondents),” he said, explaining that medicines account for about 10-20% of the household budget, which is why the price increase is so noticeable.

Pozniy noted that, according to the survey, when buying medicines, 25% of Ukrainians pay attention to price, while 24.5% pay attention to effectiveness.

“That is, slightly more than half pay attention to the combination of price and effectiveness of the selected medicines. Therefore, people try to find the optimal combination that would provide the best effect and the least financial burden in terms of treatment,” he said.

In addition, Pozniy said that 28.4% of respondents prefer Ukrainian medicines, while 33.4% prefer imported ones. For 38% of respondents, the country of origin of the drugs does not matter.

According to the results, 31.4% of respondents believe that using electronic prescriptions is very convenient, 44% believe it is somewhat convenient, 18.7% believe it is somewhat inconvenient, and only 5.9% believe it is very inconvenient.

For his part, Maksim Urakin, founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center, noted that the price of medicines is a key factor for Ukrainian citizens.

“Against this backdrop, it is particularly important how state mechanisms for reimbursement and compensation for the cost of medicines work. There is a state reimbursement program, but only 13% of Ukrainians use it. Therefore, reimbursement needs to be promoted among citizens,” he said.

The survey was conducted on the SunFlowerSociology online panel using a representative sample on February 11-12, 2026. The survey involved 1,000 respondents from a representative sample in all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territories.

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Outflow of medical personnel is one of main reasons for deterioration in availability of medical services, according to study

Ukrainians cite the outflow of medical personnel and the destruction of medical infrastructure by the aggressor as the main reasons for the deterioration in the availability of medical services during the war.

According to the results of a survey conducted by the research company Active Group and the Experts Club analytical center in early February and presented to the Interfax-Ukraine agency on Friday, 48% of respondents noted that they felt a deterioration in medical services during the war.

Among the main problems of medicine in wartime, 60% of respondents cited the outflow of medical personnel, 22.7% cited the destruction of medical infrastructure, and 13.4% cited a shortage of medicines.

“Considering that the deterioration in medical services is due to the fact that medical facilities have either been physically destroyed or doctors have left them, the fact that only 48% of respondents felt a deterioration is not a bad result. The main problems in medicine during the war are the outflow of medical personnel, followed by the destruction of infrastructure, and then the shortage of medicines. In other words, we see that the main problem is the shortage of medical personnel,” said Active Group founder Andrey Eremenko.

The reforms carried out in the medical sector in recent years have contributed to the fact that medicine continues to function, and the fact that people talk about the lack of improvement or deterioration in the quality of medical services, according to the expert, is still “not subject to harsh criticism.”

According to the survey, 7.2% currently rate the state of affairs in the healthcare system as very poor, 18.7% as rather poor, 16.7% as rather good, and 2% as very good. At the same time, 54.6% gave it an average rating.

At the same time, 29.5% of respondents completely trust their family doctor, and 61.9% trust them partially.

When assessing the possibility of obtaining consultations from a family doctor in their region, 88.8% of respondents said that it was very easy or easy to do so, while 21% said it was very difficult or difficult.

Just over 10% of respondents noted that their local hospital has a sufficient supply of medicines and modern equipment, while 45.8% said that there is a partial supply.

At the same time, 40% of respondents noted that consultations with a specialist take up to a week, 28.4% take 1-2 weeks, and 11.5% take more than a month. In 2024-2025, 68% of respondents regularly paid for medical services themselves.

At the same time, 16% of respondents noted that they spend less than 5% of their family budget on medicine, while almost 21% of respondents reported spending more than 20%.

“The study revealed both the positive and painful aspects of the Ukrainian healthcare system. The most painful issue is the brain drain. But it is important to see the strengths as well. I was very pleased that the level of trust in family doctors is very high. So, the foundation for the development of the healthcare system is there, although, in particular due to the war, there are economic barriers and barriers to accessibility,” said Maksim Urakin, founder of the Experts Club information and analytical center.

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