REUTERS
Ukrainian exports alone were estimated at almost US$3.1 billion.
Trade in agricultural commodities between Ukraine and the European Union January through July 2018 grew by 4.4%, year-over-year, to US$4.6 billion.
"In January-July 2018, foreign trade turnover of agrarian goods between Ukraine and the EU countries increased by 4.4%, to almost US$ 4.6 billion," Ukraine's Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food quoted Deputy Minister for European integration Olha Trofimtseva as saying.
Ukrainian exports alone were estimated at almost US$3.1 billion, that is, Ukraine has seen trade in surplus.
"Despite the fact that Ukrainian agrarian exports to the EU countries decreased by 3.7% in the first seven months of this year compared to the same period in 2017, they amounted to almost US$3.1 billion with the EU remaining the second most important market in the regional structure of our agri-exports with a share of 35.3%, following Asian countries," Trofimtseva said.
According to her, the biggest importers of Ukrainian agrarian products are the Netherlands with a share of 15.5%, Poland with 14.5%, Italy with 13.8%, Spain with 12.9%, Germany with 10.6%, France with 6.5%, Belgium with 3.3%, Great Britain with 3%, Hungary with 2.8%, Portugal with 2.7%, and Romania with 1.8%.
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European consumers' demand for a number of Ukrainian agricultural and food products has significantly increased, Trofimtseva said. Thus, poultry meat and offal were exported to the EU markets to the tune of US$152.1 million, which was almost 2.2 times more than in the same period last year.
Exports of the following goods were also on the rise: rapeseeds supplies grew by $73.4 million, or a 96.7% increase, those of wheat by $52 million (52%), soybeans by $17.2 million (11.6% ), other nuts by $17.1 million (80.8%), animal hides by $13.6 million (56%), dried legume vegetables by $10.8 million (three times), confectionery made of sugar products by $10.8 million (78.9%), raw or cooked, frozen fruits and nuts by $9.9 million (38.9%), juice by almost $9.2 million (by 51.3%), chocolate and other products containing cocoa by $9.1 million (69.6%).
"As for the import of goods from the EU to Ukraine, it increased by almost 30% to more than US$1.5 billion. Our key import staples were: animal feeding products, chocolate and products made of cocoa beans, tobacco, oil seeds, meat and offal, and other food products," Trofimtseva said.
As UNIAN reported, Ukraine supplied agro-food products to the EU to the tune of US$5.8 billion in 2017.