In January-February of this year, Ukraine’s mining companies reduced exports of iron ore raw materials (IORM) by 40.9% in volume terms compared to the same period last year—to 3,309,055 thousand tons from 5,595,706 thousand tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS) on Tuesday, 1,254,516 thousand tons of IOR were exported in February, and 2,054,539 thousand tons in January.
In the first two months of the year, foreign exchange earnings from mineral ore exports decreased by 42.1% to $260.130 million.
Mineral resources were exported mainly to China (33.37% of shipments in monetary terms), Slovakia (23.43%), and Poland (16.74%).
In addition, in January–February 2026, Ukraine imported 180 tons of raw materials worth $26,000 from Poland (76.92%) and Italy (23.08%); all shipments took place in January, whereas in January–February 2025, the country imported 11,000 tons worth $5,000.
As reported, Ukraine’s mining companies reduced ore exports in physical terms by 8% in 2025 compared to the previous year—to 30,995,363 thousand tons from 33,699,722 thousand tons, foreign exchange earnings decreased by 16.6%—to $2.337765 billion from $2.803223 billion. Exports were mainly directed to China (44.98% of shipments in monetary terms), Slovakia (17.15%), and Poland (16.09%).
In addition, in 2025, Ukraine imported $95,000 worth of raw materials totaling 130 tons from the Netherlands (46.32%), Italy (36.84%), and Norway (13.68%), whereas in the previous year it imported 2,042 thousand tons worth $414 thousand.
In January-February 2026, Ukraine increased imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 15.8% to $86.371 million (in February – $46.957 million).
Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in January-February of this year increased by 14.2% compared to the same period last year, to $22.793 million (in February – $11.063 million).
In 2025, Ukraine increased imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 15.3% to $514.098 million.
Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in 2025 increased by 22.9% compared to 2024, reaching $152.919 million.
Aluminum is widely used as a structural material. The main advantages of aluminum are its lightness, malleability, corrosion resistance, high thermal conductivity, and the non-toxicity of its compounds. In particular, these properties have made aluminum extremely popular in the production of kitchen utensils, aluminum foil in the food industry, and for packaging. The first three properties have made aluminum the main raw material in the aviation and aerospace industries (recently, it has been replaced by composite materials, primarily carbon fiber). After construction and packaging production—aluminum cans and foil—the largest consumer of metal is the energy sector.
For a more detailed overview of global aluminum production from 1970 to 2024, see the video on the Experts Club YouTube channel.
At the same time, Ukraine reduced imports of lead and lead products by 6.2 times in January-February 2026, to $198,000 (in February – $86,000).
Exports of lead and lead products increased by 23.3% to $1,660 thousand (in February – $607 thousand).
In 2025, the country increased imports of lead and lead products by 3.3 times to $7.801 million.
Exports of lead and lead products decreased by 17.8% to $9.377 million.
Lead is currently mainly used in the production of lead-acid batteries for the automotive industry. In addition, lead is used in the manufacture of bullets and certain alloys.
In January-February 2026, Ukraine increased imports of nickel and nickel products 2.3 times compared to the same period last year, to $4.518 million (in February – $2.052 million).
Exports of nickel and nickel products amounted to $51,000 (in February – $47,000), while in January-February 2025 they amounted to $33,000.
In addition, in 2025 Ukraine reduced imports of nickel and nickel products by 2.7% compared to 2024 – to $26.011 million.
Exports of nickel and nickel products amounted to $1.420 million, compared to $602 thousand in 2024.
Nickel is used in the production of stainless steel and for nickel plating. Nickel is also used in the production of batteries, in powder metallurgy, and in chemical reagents.
Oat exports from Ukraine in January-February 2026 decreased by 98% compared to the same period in 2025, according to the information and analytical agency APK-Inform, citing its own monitoring data.
According to the report, 506 tons of oats were shipped to foreign markets in January, while in February, exports fell to 215 tons. The main buyers of Ukrainian oats in December 2025 were Turkey and India, whose shares in the structure of shipments were 90.3% and 4%, respectively.
“The decline in exports is due to the suspension of purchases by leading importing countries — Turkey and India. At the same time, demand prices for oats in 2026 are mainly fixed in the previously formed range — 8,900-10,500 UAH/ton CPT port,” analysts said.
APK-Inform noted that despite minimal export volumes, the domestic market maintains stable price indicators in ports. This allows producers to hold grain in anticipation of a recovery in demand from major trading partners.
In January-February of this year, Ukrainian enterprises reduced imports of copper and copper products in monetary terms by 11.6% compared to the same period last year, to $26.757 million.
According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine on Tuesday, exports of copper and copper products during the specified period decreased by 14.6% to $12.213 million.
In February, copper imports amounted to $15.724 million, while exports amounted to $7.260 million.
As reported, in 2025, Ukrainian enterprises increased imports of copper and copper products in monetary terms by 23.2% compared to the previous year, to $173.453 million, while exports of copper and copper products grew by 17.7%, to $103.848 million.
Copper is widely used in electrical engineering, in the production of pipes, for creating alloys, in medicine, and in other industries.
Earlier, the Experts Club information and analytical center released a video dedicated to global copper production and leading producing countries – https://youtube.com/shorts/_h8iU50z8C0?si=a-XkgGEfeUxseQNa
