Ukraine-EU trade turnover in agricultural products grows by almost 25% in Jan-May 2019

Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Olha Trofimtseva says the trade turnover in agricultural produce between Ukraine and the European Union in January-May 2019 grew by 24.7% year-over-year (y-o-y), to US$4.2 billion.

"The foreign trade turnover in agricultural products between Ukraine and the EU states in January-May 2019 soared by 24.7% or $830,600 million, compared with the same period in 2018, amounting to $4.2 billion," she wrote on Facebook on July 5.

In particular, Ukrainian agriexports to the EU over the period under review rose by 30.8% y-o-y, to $2.97 billion.

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The major staples of Ukrainian agriexports to the EU were grains ($1.4 million), vegetable oils ($610.5 million), food industry residues and waste ($272.8 million), oilseeds ($177.4 million), meat and edible offal of poultry (almost $86 million), honey ($34.6 million), sugar confectionery ($22 million), as well as cocoa bean products and chocolate (19.9 million).

Trofimtseva added that major buyers of Ukrainian farm produce over the period under review were the Netherlands (17.6% in the total structure of trade with the EU), Spain (13.1%), Poland (13.1%), Germany (10.8%), Italy (10.8%), France (5.7%), Great Britain (4.1%), Belgium (3.2%), Portugal (2.9%), Hungary (2.9%), and Ireland (2, 7%).

In addition, imports from the EU countries to Ukraine in January-May increased by 12.1% y-o-y, to $1.2 billion.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukraine in 2018 increased exports of agricultural products to the EU by 8.7% to $6.3 billion.