In Ukraine, 4,621 enforcement proceedings were initiated between January and August 2026 to collect unpaid wages, which is 16% fewer than during the same period last year, when 5,470 such proceedings were registered, according to data from the Unified Register of Debtors, as analyzed by OpenDataBot.
Despite the decline in the number of new cases, the total volume of unresolved wage arrears remains significant. As of September, the Unified Register of Debtors listed 35,922 active cases related to unpaid wages.
Some of these debts have remained unresolved for many years. In particular, 1,957 active cases were opened as far back as 2017 and have still not been closed.
New cases were filed against 311 companies between January and August 2026. Of these, 144—or about 46%—are private enterprises, 117 are state-owned, and another 50 belong to local communities.
Thus, state-owned and municipal companies together account for more than half of the enterprises against which new enforcement proceedings regarding wage arrears were initiated this year.
OpenDataBot compiles statistics based on the Unified Register of Debtors, into which enforcement proceedings are entered after the relevant decisions on debt collection are issued.
Source: OpenDataBot, data for January–August 2026.
Imports of trucks to Ukraine from January through August 2026 declined by 1.1% in monetary terms compared to the same period in 2025—to $627.5 million, according to statistics from the State Customs Service.
According to the published data, imports of these vehicles rose by 13.5% in August compared to August 2025, reaching $80.1 million.
As in the previous year, the largest number of trucks in January–August were imported from Poland, but imports from that country fell by 24%—to $98.8 million—and its share of total truck imports decreased to 15.74% from 20.5%.
Germany became the second-largest supplier of trucks to Ukraine, with exports totaling $88.4 million; in January–August 2025, it had not been among the top three suppliers.
Imports from Italy, which also was not among the top three truck suppliers a year ago, totaled $68.9 million (nearly 11%).
In January–August of last year, the top three truck suppliers were Poland, France, and the United States.
Imports of trucks from all other countries during this period increased by 20.5%—to $371.4 million.
At the same time, according to statistics, Ukraine exported only $2.17 million worth of trucks over the eight-month period, mostly to Turkey, while a year ago, exports totaled nearly $4 million—also primarily to Turkey.
As previously reported, in 2025, imports of trucks into Ukraine increased by 5.5% compared to 2024—to $999.5 million, with the largest volumes coming from France—$169.2 million (42.8% more than the year before last), Poland—$162.7 million (-14.7%), and the United States—$109 million (+2%).
Large chemical companies were among those with the highest number of new enforcement proceedings related to wage arrears in Ukraine from January through August 2026, according to Experts.news.
According to OpenDataBot, 245 new enforcement proceedings have been opened against Sumykhimprom since the beginning of the year, and all of them remain active as of September.
A total of 213 enforcement proceedings have been registered against the Odesa Port Plant (OPP), of which 212 remain active.
Another 205 enforcement proceedings have been opened against “Karpatnaftohim,” and 191 against “Dniproazot.” All of these proceedings remained active as of the time the statistics were compiled.
At the same time, formally, the largest number of new proceedings over the eight-month period was registered against “Teplokomunenergo of the Oleksandriya City Council”—1,008—but all of them have already been closed.
“Svitlovodskbyt” ranked second in terms of the number of new cases—398 proceedings, of which only 11 remain active.
The statistics indicate a significant concentration of wage arrears in the chemical industry. In total, enterprises engaged in the production of chemical products accounted for 989 new enforcement proceedings in January–August, or 21% of the total number in Ukraine.
In total, over the first eight months of 2026, 4,621 new enforcement proceedings were initiated in the country to collect wage arrears.
Source: OpenDataBot, Unified Register of Debtors.
More than half of the new enforcement proceedings regarding wage arrears in Ukraine during the first eight months of 2026 were concentrated in just two sectors—electricity and gas supply, and chemical production.
According to OpenDataBot, 1,545 enforcement proceedings were initiated against companies in the electricity and gas supply sector from January through August, accounting for about one-third of all new cases involving wage arrears.
Another 989 proceedings, or 21%, were initiated against chemical manufacturers.
Thus, these two sectors together accounted for about 55% of all new enforcement proceedings related to wage arrears in the country.
The next sector by number of proceedings was the manufacture of other transportation equipment, with 263 cases. Machinery manufacturing companies accounted for 235 proceedings, and electrical equipment manufacturers for 191.
In total, 4,621 new enforcement proceedings regarding wage arrears were registered in Ukraine from January through August 2026, which is 16% fewer than a year earlier.
The high concentration of debt in the energy and chemical industries is linked, in particular, to the presence in these sectors of large enterprises with complex financial situations and significant accumulated debt to employees.
In particular, among the companies with a large number of new enforcement proceedings in 2026 are Sumykhimprom, the Odesa Port Plant, Karpatnaftochim, and Dniproazot.
Source: OpenDataBot, Unified Register of Debtors.
According to Experts.news, Ukraine could account for about 31.3% of global sunflower oil exports in the 2026/27 marketing year, according to calculations by Open4Business based on the September forecast from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
According to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service report Oilseeds: World Markets and Trade, published on September 11, 2026, Ukrainian sunflower oil exports are projected to reach 5 million metric tons, while global exports are expected to total 15.968 million metric tons.
Thus, nearly one in every three metric tons of sunflower oil supplied to the global market may be of Ukrainian origin.
In the previous 2025/26 marketing year, Ukraine exported approximately 4.036 million metric tons of sunflower oil out of total global exports of about 13.51 million metric tons. At that time, Ukraine’s share was about 29.9%. In the new season, this figure may increase by approximately 1.4 percentage points.
The USDA expects Ukraine to remain the world’s second-largest exporter of sunflower oil after Russia. Russian shipments are projected at 5.1 million metric tons, accounting for approximately 31.9% of global exports.
Together, Ukraine and Russia could supply about 10.1 million metric tons to foreign markets, or more than 63% of total global sunflower oil exports.
Argentina will remain the third-largest exporter, with projected shipments of about 2.05 million metric tons, accounting for approximately 12.8% of global trade. Turkey is expected to export about 1.1 million metric tons, and the European Union—about 850,000 metric tons.
The growth in Ukrainian exports will be driven by a recovery in the sunflower harvest and increased capacity utilization at processing plants. The USDA forecasts sunflower seed production in Ukraine for the 2026/27 marketing year at 13 million metric tons, compared to 10.7 million metric tons in the previous season.
Sunflower oil production, according to the agency’s estimates, will increase to 5.418 million metric tons from 4.515 million metric tons in the 2025/26 marketing year, or by approximately 20%.
At the same time, domestic consumption of sunflower oil in Ukraine is expected to reach about 470,000 metric tons, so the bulk of the additional production will be directed toward exports.
Overall, the USDA forecasts global sunflower oil exports to grow by approximately 18%—from 13.51 million metric tons in the previous season to 15.968 million metric tons in the 2026/27 marketing year.
The increase in supply will largely be driven by a recovery in production in the Black Sea region, primarily in Ukraine and Russia. At the same time, imports are expected to rise from the largest consumers of vegetable oils, notably India and China.
Ukraine traditionally remains one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of sunflower oil. A distinctive feature of the Ukrainian industry is the high proportion of domestic seed processing, which means that exports consist primarily of higher-value-added products—oil and meal—rather than raw materials.
Source: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, Oilseeds: World Markets and Trade, September 11, 2026: official USDA report.
According to Experts.news, Poland remained the top destination for Ukrainians applying for EU residence permits outside the temporary protection mechanism: in 2025, the country accounted for 72% of all first-time residence permits issued to Ukrainian citizens in the European Union, according to Eurostat data.
In total, Ukrainians received 335,096 first-time residence permits in EU countries. Based on Poland’s share, this amounts to approximately 241,000 permits issued to Ukrainians by Polish authorities.
This concentration clearly sets Ukrainian migration apart from other large groups of third-country nationals. By comparison, Poland was also the primary destination for Belarusians, issuing 87.1% of all first-time residence permits received by Belarusian citizens in EU countries.
For Ukrainians, employment remains the main reason for applying for a residence permit. Moreover, 86.3% of all first-time residence permits granted to Ukrainians in the EU for work purposes were issued by Poland.
Poland itself issued 467,300 first-time residence permits to citizens of non-EU countries in 2025, ranking third in the European Union after Spain and Germany.
At the same time, Poland remains the undisputed EU leader in terms of the number of work-related permits: the country issued 318,200 first-time work-based residence permits. Eurostat notes that the main recipients were citizens of Ukraine and Belarus.
The statistics on first-time residence permits do not include Ukrainians who are in Poland or other EU countries under temporary protection.
