Daily monitor

On December 23, 197.4 thsd mt of crude oil were sold at Resources Auction 124, which took place on the floor of the Ukrainian Interbank Currency Exchange. According to our source at the UICE, the average price of oil was UAH 1,450 per mt, or USD 20.8 per bbl (excluding VAT, at USD/UAH 7.94).

The Kyiv Cardboard Paper Mill [KIKP UZ, N/R] in Obukhiv (Kyiv Region) – a leading Ukrainian pulp and paper producer – has released results for the first eleven months of 2008. From January to November 2008, the company increased production by 36.7% YoY (to UAH 1.029 bln), according to Interfax-Ukraine.

The Luhansk-based Rubizhnoye Cardboard and Packaging Mill one of Ukraine's largest cardboard packaging producers – cut corrugated cardboard production in January-November 2008 cut production by 20.2% compared to the same period in 2007 (to 167.135 mln sq.m.).

The Zhydachiv Pulp and Paper Plant [ZCPK UZ, N/R] – the monopoly producer of newsprint in Ukraine, and located in the Lviv Region – recorded a 16.7% increase in production (to UAH 420.294 mln) YoY for the period January-November 2008. These figures were released by the plant’s owner Osnova-Papir.

The National Electricity Regulatory Commission of Ukraine has set key parameters for electricity distribution companies in 2009.

The Ukrainian Parliament has prolonged the restriction on the sale of agricultural until January 1, 2010. The necessary amendments were made to the anti-crisis law that was adopted by the Parliament on December 23, 2008.

Shostka [SHMK UZ, N/R], a Ukrainian dairy producer, is going to consider a private additional share issue of 0.4 mln ordinary shares at a par value of USD 2.4 (UAH 19.21) and the injection of a USD 0.9 mln (UAH 7.4 mln) into its Statutory Fund, according to the Ukrainian News agency. The final decision is to be taken by Shostka’s shareholders at their AGM on February 3, 2009.

At a December 17 EGM, shareholders of Zaporizhstal [ZPST UZ, U/R] voted to recall their July 30 dividends decision for 2007. The 100%, UAH 0.21 (USD 0.025 at USD/UAH 8.2) per share dividends will not be paid. Instead, most of the 2007 profits (UAH 487.1 mln, USD 59.4 mln) will be directed towards modernization. A small portion (UAH 40.6 mln, USD 5.0 mln) will be directed towards equity investments.

The NBU is restricting currency loans for borrowers who don’t have an income set in foreign currency, which mainly applies to consumer and mortgage loans, according to the National Bank order No. 406 issued on December 1 and registered by the Justice Ministry on December 17, which comes into effect on December 28.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has granted USD 75 mln to Raiffeisen Bank Aval [BAVL UZ, U/R] on the conditions of subordinated debt. A fund provision contract was signed on December 22. No information about the interest rate was disclosed.