EU-Ukraine agri products foreign trade turnover boosted 20 pct

In January-March 2019, agricultural products foreign trade turnover between Ukraine and the European Union increased by 20 per cent to USD 2.6 billion. This was reported by Nikolai Pugachev, the deputy director of the National Scientific Center Institute of Agrarian Economics, NAAS corresponding member.

According to him, in the first quarter of 2019, there was an increase in imports to USD 735 million (up 10 per cent), while exports reached USD 1.9 billion (up 24 per cent) as compared with the corresponding period of 2018.

Six states are Ukraine's key trading partners in the EU, namely the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, Italy, Germany and France. Their total share in the turnover of agricultural products is about 70 per cent.

“The main volumes of supplies to Europe are presented by grain crops (corn), oilseeds (soybeans and rapeseed), sunflower oil and processing residues. Ukraine imports mainly corn and sunflower seeds, various food products, chocolate, tobacco and alcoholic beverages from the EU member states,” the report says.

In January-March 2019, Ukrainian exporters fully filled duty-free quotas for the supply of honey, apple and grape juice, corn (basic and additional quotas) and sugar, as well as quarterly quota for poultry meat.

“If the existing export growth remains, Ukraine will once again update the record indicator of agri-food products supply to the European Union by the end of the year,” Nikolai Pugachev concluded.

In the first quarter of 2019, exports of agricultural products from Ukraine to the EU increased by 24.4 per cent vs. 2018.

The infographic guide Agribusiness of Ukraine 2017/18 is available by the link.