In January–June 2026, Ukraine increased its imports of nickel and nickel products by 5.2% compared to the same period last year, reaching $11,119 million.
According to customs statistics, nickel and nickel product imports in June totaled $1.946 million.
Exports of nickel and nickel products in January–June 2026 totaled $310,000, and in June—$118,000, compared to $608,000 for the first six months of 2025.
As previously reported, Ukraine reduced its imports of nickel and nickel products by 2.7% in 2025 compared to 2024, down to $26,011 million. Exports of nickel and nickel products totaled $1,420 million, compared to $602 thousand in 2024.
Nickel is used in the production of stainless steel and for nickel plating. It is also used in battery manufacturing, powder metallurgy, and chemical reagents.
In January–June 2026, Ukraine increased its imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 24.5% compared to the same period last year, reaching $316.841 million.
According to customs statistics, aluminum and aluminum product imports totaled $68.864 million in June.
Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in January–June of this year rose by 28% compared to the same period last year, reaching $90.732 million; in June, they totaled $18.339 million.
As previously reported, in 2025, Ukraine increased its imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 15.3% compared to 2024, reaching $514.098 million. Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in 2025 rose by 22.9% to $152.919 million.
Aluminum is widely used as a structural material. The main advantages of aluminum are its light weight, formability, corrosion resistance, high thermal conductivity, and the non-toxic nature of its compounds. In particular, these properties have made aluminum extremely popular in the production of cookware, aluminum foil in the food industry, and for packaging. The first three properties have made aluminum the primary raw material in the aviation and aerospace industries (though it has recently been replaced by composite materials, primarily carbon fiber). After construction and packaging production—aluminum cans and foil—the energy sector is the largest consumer of this metal.
For a more detailed overview of global aluminum production from 1970 to 2024, watch the video on the Experts Club YouTube channel.
In January–June of this year, Ukrainian companies increased their imports of copper and copper products by 14.2% in monetary terms compared to the same period last year, reaching $106.351 million.
According to customs statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, exports of copper and copper products rose by 11.6% over the six-month period, reaching $51.405 million.
In June, copper imports totaled $21.012 million, while exports amounted to $12.159 million.
As previously reported, in 2025, Ukrainian companies increased imports of copper and copper products by 23.2% in monetary terms compared to 2024—to $173.453 million—while exports of copper and copper products rose 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.
Previously, the Experts Club Information and Analytical Center released a video on global copper production and leading producing countries – https://youtube.com/shorts/_h8iU50z8C0?si=a-XkgGEfeUxseQNa
In January–June of this year, Ukraine increased its exports of processed pig iron by 11.1% in volume terms compared to the same period last year—to 981,461 thousand metric tons from 883,174 thousand metric tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS), 183,780 thousand metric tons of pig iron were exported in June, 159,378 thousand metric tons in May, in April—181,670 thousand metric tons, in March—168,493 thousand metric tons, in February—194,345 thousand metric tons, and in January—93,795 thousand metric tons.
From January through June 2026, pig iron exports in monetary terms increased by 11.3% to $388,890 million. Exports were primarily directed to the United States (86.25% of shipments in monetary terms), Turkey (9.16%), and Italy (2.33%).
In the first six months of this year, the country imported 15 metric tons of pig iron from Germany worth $35,000, compared to 29 metric tons worth $55,000 during the same period last year.
As previously reported, in 2025 Ukraine increased its pig iron exports by 53.5% in volume terms compared to 2024—to 1,980,620 metric tons—and by 51.9% in revenue, to $759,882 million. Exports were primarily shipped to the United States (68.25% of shipments by value), Italy (20.26%), and Turkey (3.63%).
Last year, the country imported 39 thousand metric tons of pig iron worth $78 thousand from Germany (51.95%) and Brazil (48.05%), while in January–December 2024, 38 metric tons worth $90 thousand were imported.
Starting March 12, 2025, the United States, pursuant to a decision by President Donald Trump, began imposing a 25% tariff on imports of Ukrainian steel products, excluding pig iron.
The Experts Club Information and Analytical Center recently released a video analysis of the top 20 steel-producing countries – https://youtube.com/shorts/j7Yev2HCS4o?si=lfmGJ5jrx8036z1U
In January–June of this year, Ukrainian companies increased their consumption of rolled metal products by 3.64% compared to the same period last year—to 2 million 9.3 thousand metric tons.
According to a press release from the “Ukrmetallurgprom” association, 880.3 thousand metric tons were imported during this period, accounting for 43.81% of the domestic rolled steel consumption market.
According to “Ukrmetallurgprom,” in January–June 2026, Ukrainian steel companies produced 2.940 million metric tons of rolled steel (95.8% of the figure for the same period in 2025), of which, according to the State Customs Service of Ukraine, approximately 1.811 million metric tons—or 61.6%—were exported. In January–June 2025, the share of exports was 60.2% (1.848 million metric tons out of a total rolled steel production of 3.070 million metric tons).
The share of semi-finished products in export shipments in January–June 2026 was 42.85%, which is significantly higher than the figure for the same period in 2025 (30.90%). The share of flat products in exports in January–June 2026 was slightly lower than in January–June 2025 (43.90% and 46.81%, respectively). The share of long products, however, was noticeably lower than in January–June 2025 (13.35% in 2026 versus 22.29% in 2025).
The structure of imports in January–June 2026 is characterized by a marked dominance of flat-rolled products over structural steel (64.38% and 27.99%, respectively), however, in January–June 2025, the dominance of flat-rolled products over long products was significantly greater (77.30% and 20.96%, respectively).
“In January–June 2026, the domestic market capacity was 2,009.3 thousand metric tons of rolled steel, of which 880.3 thousand metric tons, or 43.81%, consisted of imports. In January–June 2025, the domestic market capacity was 1,938.7 thousand metric tons, of which 716.7 thousand metric tons, or 36.97%, were imported. “Thus, in January–June 2026, the domestic market capacity increased by 3.64% compared to January–June 2025, with a simultaneous 6.84% rise in the share of imports,” the press release states.
According to the State Customs Service, the main export markets for Ukrainian rolled metal in January–June 2026 were EU countries (80.0%), other European countries (10.6%), and the CIS (7.0%).
Among importers of rolled metal products in the first half of 2026, other European countries ranked first (48.5%), followed by Asian countries (25.8%), and EU-27 countries (16.4%).
As previously reported, Ukraine’s rolled metal market grew by 21.73% in 2025 compared to 2024, reaching 4 million 1.6 thousand metric tons. Imports totaled 1 million 603.6 thousand metric tons, accounting for 40.07% of domestic rolled metal consumption.
Ukraine’s rolled steel market in 2024 shrank by 6.26% compared to the previous year—to 3,288.4 thousand metric tons, while in 2023 it increased 2.19 times compared to 2022—to 3,505.6 thousand metric tons.
CONSUMPTION, EXPORTS, IMPORTS, ROLLED STEEL, UKRMETALLURGPROM
In January–June of this year, Ukraine’s mining companies reduced their exports of iron ore raw materials (IORM) by 25.4% in volume terms compared to the same period last year—down to 12 million 33.825 thousand metric tons from 16 million 137.809 thousand metric tons.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS), 2,021,299 metric tons of iron ore were exported in June, 2,239,167 metric tons in May, 2,163,837 metric tons in April, in March—2,300,467 thousand metric tons, in February—1,254,516 thousand metric tons, and in January—2,054,539 thousand metric tons.
During the first six months of the year, foreign exchange earnings from raw material exports decreased by 26.3% to $935.258 million.
Mineral resources were exported primarily to China (42.36% of shipments in monetary terms), Slovakia (18.50%), and Poland (14.13%).
In addition, in January–June 2026, Ukraine imported 224 metric tons of raw materials worth $62,000 from the Netherlands (38.71%), Poland (32.26%), and Italy (29.03%), whereas in January–June 2025, it imported 75,000 metric tons worth $52,000.
As previously reported, Ukraine’s mining companies reduced ore exports in physical terms by 8% in 2025 compared to the previous year—to 30,995,363 metric tons from 33,699,722 metric tons, and foreign exchange revenue decreased by 16.6%—to $2 billion 337.765 million from $2 billion 803.223 million. Exports were primarily shipped to China (44.98% of shipments by value), Slovakia (17.15%), and Poland (16.09%).
In addition, in 2025, Ukraine imported 130 metric tons of raw materials worth $95 thousand from the Netherlands (46.32%), Italy (36.84%), and Norway (13.68%), whereas the previous year it imported 2,042 thousand metric tons worth $414 thousand
