Ukrainian banks increased their stock of net UAH loans by 34% y-o-y in April, to UAH 900bn (all adjusted for NPLs), up from 33% in March, with net corporate and retail hryvnia loan portfolios rising by 34% y-o-y and 35%, to UAH 575bn and UAH 326bn, respectively. Hryvnia-denominated deposits rose by 16% y-o-y in April to UAH 2,227bn, the same growth pace as in March, while FX deposits grew by 4.7% y-o-y to $21.2bn, accelerating slightly from 4.3% in March. Interest rates on new corporate UAH loans averaged 15.8% last month, up 0.7pp YTD but still 1.0pp lower y-o-y, while rates on new retail UAH loans rose by 1.8pp YTD and 1.3pp y-o-y to 37.0%. Rates on new corporate deposits stood at 9.9% in April, down 0.4pp YTD but up 0.2pp y-o-y, while retail deposit rates averaged 10.5%, unchanged both YTD and y-o-y.

WSE-listed Astarta Holding, a Ukrainian agricultural producer focused on sugar, grain, and soybean processing, increased 1Q26 net sales by 19% y-o-y to $154m, while EBITDA dropped by 52% y-o-y to $13m and net income turned negative at $14m (vs. +$7m in 1Q25). End-1Q26 net debt stood at $251m, yielding a Net Debt/LTM EBITDA ratio of 2.6x, up from 2.4x at end-2025.

Ukraine’s merchandise trade deficit provisionally totaled $5.1bn in April, widening from $4.9bn in March and $3.0bn in April 2025. The 4M26 merchandise trade gap reached $18.3bn, up from $11.5bn in 4M25.

Finished and semi-finished steel exports from Ukraine rose 11% m-o-m to 301 kt in April (-7.6% y-o-y), bringing 4M26 exports to 1.1 Mt (-9.1% y-o-y). Iron ore exports dropped by 5.9% m-o-m to 2.2 Mt in April (-18% y-o-y) and fell 30% y-o-y to 7.8 Mt in 4M26.

The Court of First Instance of the Astana International Financial Centre Court recognized an arbitration award issued in Zurich ordering Gazprom to pay nearly $1.4bn to Naftogaz and preliminarily authorized its enforcement in Kazakhstan.

Ukraine’s real GDP rose 0.9% y-o-y in April, accelerating from +0.1-0.2% in March and narrowing the 4M26 decline to -0.2% y-o-y from -0.5% in 1Q26, Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said yesterday, citing provisional estimates from the Ministry of Economy. According to the PM, the acceleration in April was driven by domestic trade, mining, manufacturing, food processing, the defense sector, and increased output of energy equipment needed to repair damaged infrastructure.

Fitch Ratings has downgraded its long-term issuer default rating (IDR) on Vodafone Ukraine (VFU) by one notch to CCC-, citing elevated restructuring risks for the company’s $280m notes maturing in February 2027. Fitch expects that prevailing FX restrictions will prevent VFU from using its local liquidity to repay the bond, while the company is also likely to have limited access to capital markets to refinance the notes.

Crude steel production in Ukraine fell by 26% m-o-m and 25% y-o-y to 517 kt in April, bringing 4M26 production to 2.2 Mt (-7.4% y-o-y). Metinvest’s Zaporizhstal JV produced 157 kt of crude steel in April, down 48% m-o-m and 42% y-o-y, and 915 kt in 4M26 (-10% y-o-y), accounting for 34% of total monthly output and 41% of YTD production.

Russia carried out another drone attack yesterday against commercial vessels en route to Ukraine’s deep-sea ports, damaging three ships, including one Chinese vessel. The reported damage was not critical, and all ships continued to their destination points.

According to provisional Finance Ministry data, the central budget posted a cash deficit of UAH 142bn ($3.2bn) in April, widening from $2.2bn in March and bringing the 4M26 gap to $6.2bn, slightly below $6.9bn in 4M25.

WSE-listed Ukrainian agricultural producer IMC reported 1Q26 sales of $44m (-13% y-o-y), EBITDA of $3m (-68% y-o-y), and a net loss of $5m, down from a $1m net profit in 1Q25. End-1Q26 financial debt (before $124m of lease liabilities under IFRS 16) halved y-o-y to $11m, implying a net cash position of $17m (-22% y-o-y).

• Russian forces lost more territory than they gained last week, according to OSINT sources — the first such occurrence since 2023. • Ukraine’s mid-range strike campaign against Russia’s front-line logistics keeps evolving, with recent hits targeting Mariupol, more than 100 km from the line of contact. • Russia resumed mass aerial attacks after the brief May 9-11 ceasefire; Ukraine retaliated by hitting the Moscow region.

DTEK Energy boosted 2025 sales by 24% y-o-y to $1.8bn, while EBITDA surged by 44% to $0.8bn, implying an EBITDA margin of 45% (+6.3pp). Operating cash flow increased 2.6x to $901m, cash outflow from investing activities rose by 37% to $251m, while financing cash outflows jumped 7x y-o-y to $673m. Total debt declined by 22% y-o-y to $0.9bn, implying a Debt/EBITDA ratio of 1.0x, down from 1.9x in 2024. End-2025 cash stood at a relatively low $83m (-21% y-o-y). The company also disclosed that it repurchased $253m of its 2027 bonds during 2025 at an average price of 83% of par and continued repurchases in 2026, booking a UAH 823m ($19m) buyback gain.

Ukraine’s steel export revenues may fall by up to EUR 1bn due to safeguard measures expected to be introduced by the EU from July 1, 2026, the Financial Times reported, citing unnamed Ukrainian officials. The European Commission said earlier that tariff-free steel quotas would amount to 18.3 Mt per year, down 47% from existing tariff quotas, while the out-of-quota duty would increase to 50% from 25% effective July 1, 2026. The allocation of quotas among countries remains subject to negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade to ensure compatibility with World Trade Organization rules.

IMF staff will travel to Ukraine in the coming weeks for the first review of the recently approved $8.1bn EFF program, IMF Director of Communications Julie Kozack said yesterday. The mission will discuss recent economic developments and progress on reforms, including the removal of VAT-related privileges for individual entrepreneurs and the introduction of VAT on small parcels. Kozack highlighted that Ukraine needs to move forward with mobilizing domestic financing and noted that the Fund supports measures aimed at broadening the tax base and reducing the shadow economy, which reportedly accounts for 45% of Ukraine’s GDP.

Ukraine exported 4.2 Mt of grain and oilseed crops in April, the tenth month of marketing year 2025/26 (July-June), up 6.0% m-o-m and 50% y-o-y, bringing 4M26 exports to 15.7 Mt (+8.0% y-o-y). Grain exports rose 10% m-o-m to 4.0 Mt in April (+68% y-o-y), while oilseed exports fell 42% m-o-m to 0.2 Mt (-53% y-o-y).