Daily monitor

According to a note released late Friday afternoon, National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has dropped the interest rate to 11% from the 12% imposed in April 2008.

According to Mr. Melnik, the Minister of Agriculture, Ukraine’s government will sell sugar from the State Reserve. The volume of sugar sold will depend on the market demand, though a total 40 thsd mt of sugar is available. Earlier, the government commissioned a state committee to sell 10 thsd mt of sugar to retail companies in order to stabilize domestic sugar prices.

On June 12, the Cabinet of Ministers decisions concerning the recapitalization of three banks were finally disclosed.

Shareholders of ArcelorMittal Kryvyy Rih [KSTL UZ, U/R] decided at their June 11 AGM to reinvest fully the 2008 profits and not to declare dividends for that year.

The State Property Fund has once again postponed the privatisation auctions for Prykarpattyaoblenergo [PREN UZ, BUY] and Sumyoblenergo, this time from June 12 to June 19, due to the lack of applications.

According to a note from the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine, the merchandise deficit grew in January-April 2009 to USD 1.94 bln as compared to USD 1.44 bln in January-March 2009.

The government of Ukraine has approved an increase of the statutory capital of the state-owned oil and gas monopoly Naftogaz Ukrayiny 4.4 times from UAH 5.56 bln (UAH 730.62 mln) to UAH 24.16 bln (USD 3.17 bln).

According to a press release issued by the Bogdan Automobile Plant [LUAZ UZ, U/R], the company resumed automobiles production on June 10. Plant operations had stood idle since early April 2009 due to the significant amount of automobiles ready for sale in the plant’s warehouse and the lack of demand for new cars in Ukraine.

According to the press service of Sumy Frunze Machine Building [SMASH UZ, N/R] – one of Europe’s largest producers of equipment for the oil, gas, and chemical industries – the company will deliver three gas turbine power generation units to a Russian company, Surgutneftegaz by mid-October 2009.

EU inspectors representing the European Commission’s SANCO have begun their work in Ukraine. Five Ukrainian poultry plants, including facilities owned by MHP [MHPC LI, BUY], specifically, Druzhby Narodiv and Lehko Myronivsky Meat Processing Plant, some of assets belonging to Agromars Complex ( processing plant Ukraine) and Ovostar.