Topic: Economy
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Ukraine's 2027 budget has $32.6 billion uncovered financing need, finance minister says
Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said the country's 2027 budget faces an uncovered financing need of $32.6 billion — the tightest budget situation since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. He called on European partners to seek additional sources of financing and presented a new proposal to redistribute roughly $300 billion in frozen Russian assets across all 27 EU member states.
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FAO food price index hits highest level since late 2022 as sugar, grains surge
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization's Food Price Index rose 1.9% in August to 133.3 points, its highest level since November 2022, with all five sub-indices climbing. Sugar jumped 11.9%, the sharpest move, while grains and vegetable oils also reached multi-year highs. FAO lowered its 2026 world grain production forecast and warned that climate shocks, Black Sea disruptions and trade frictions are putting a risk premium back on food markets.
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Ferrexpo raises $100m in share placement led by Kernel's Verevsky
Swiss-registered iron ore group Ferrexpo placed 448,848,484 new shares at 16.5 pence each on 4 September, raising roughly $100 million. Kernel owner Andriy Verevsky contributed $50 million for a 21.4% stake, while existing largest shareholder Fevamotinico subscribed for additional shares. The funds are intended to restart Poltava and Yeristivsky mining and processing plants, which suspended production on 5 August due to security risks and port blockages.
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India's foreign minister makes first standalone bilateral visit to Ukraine, meets Zelensky and Sybiha in Kyiv
India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar arrived in Kyiv on 3 September for the first standalone bilateral visit by an Indian foreign minister to Ukraine. He held talks and a joint briefing with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha and met President Volodymyr Zelensky, discussing peace efforts, bilateral trade and cooperation, freedom of navigation in the Black Sea, and global food security. Jaishankar said the war would be resolved through diplomacy and negotiations, not through decisions by individual countries to buy or not buy Russian oil.
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Ukraine's government submits four draft laws tied to €1.45 billion EU tranche
Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers approved and sent to the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, four draft laws that are conditions for receiving the third €1.45 billion tranche of EU macro-financial assistance and are tied to broader obligations to the EU and IMF. Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky announced the move, framing it as necessary for unlocking a significant portion of the $29.5 billion in expected partner assistance.
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Zelensky's Staff meeting sets accelerated timeline for interceptor drones against jet-powered Shaheds
President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Staff focused on accelerating Ukrainian production of high-speed interceptor drones designed to counter Russian jet-powered Shahed-type attack drones. Prototypes of the new weapons have been developed, with work underway to bring them to the required effectiveness, and specific deadlines have been set for involving business in air defense production. Zelensky framed the effort as part of an asymmetric response to Russia's growing output of high-speed attack drones.
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Russia uses Maldives airport in Malé as sanctions-evasion transit hub, WSJ investigation finds
A Wall Street Journal investigation alleges that Russia is using the international airport in Malé as a transit point to import sanctioned and dual-use goods from the US, Europe, and China. Each morning, an Aeroflot flight lands at Malé, where local intermediaries help process customs before cargo is reloaded onto Aeroflot flights to Moscow. Some shipments reportedly reach sanctioned Russian entities, including S7 Airlines.
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Ukrainian parliament fails for second time to pass bill ending VAT exemption for parcels under €150
The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, voted down bill No. 15460, which would have abolished the VAT exemption for international parcels valued at up to €150. The bill received 194 votes in favour, 32 short of the number needed for passage. The failure leaves a key condition for IMF and EU financial assistance unmet.
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Wheat prices surge as Black Sea attacks cripple Ukraine's agricultural exports
Russian strikes on shipping in the Black Sea have driven Chicago wheat prices to their highest level since July 2023 and slashed Ukraine's seaborne grain exports. Ukraine's agricultural sector faces tens of billions of dollars in cumulative losses, with alternative routes only partially able to compensate for the loss of Black Sea capacity.