Why Ukraine

• Ukraine is a large market with 46 million population. It has high potential and low level of competition in many sectors.
• Ukraine’s economy is on sustainable growth track. In 2010, the GPD had increase by 4,3%, industrial output – by 11% compared to 2009. The 2011 GDP growth forecast is up to 5%. Economic growth rate in some of the sectors of economy exceeds that of the Europe.
• Ukraine was the 5th world’s largest wheat exporter in 2009/2010 marketing year, after the USA, Canada, Australia and Russia (source: US Department of Agriculture).
• Ukraine is the 8th world’s largest still producer (source: World Steel Association).

• Ukraine is the largest country (603,6 sq. km of area) located in Europe and is placed on the crossroad of the Europe – Russia – Central Asia – Middle East trade routes. It makes the geography ideal for locating production capacities and exporting to Europe, Russia and Asia.
• Four out of 10 Pan-European Transport Corridors pass through Ukraine.
• Ukraine has access to Black and Azov Seas, and thus further connection to the Middle East.
• Ukraine’s direct neighbors are:

• Poland (EU member)
• Romania (EU member)
• Slovenia (EU member)
• Hungary (EU member)
• Russia
• Belorussia
• Moldova

• In Ukraine, about 20 000 deposits of 200 different kinds of minerals have been discovered.
• The reserves of some of the discovered minerals exceed those of the largest countries, including the USA, Russia, Great Britain, France, Germany, Canada and others.
• The mining volumes of the iron, manganese, titanium-zirconium and other ores in Ukraine are among the largest in Europe and the world.
• Ukraine possesses 30% of the world’s black soils, which consist about 60% of the Ukraine’s agrarian lands.

• GDP in Ukraine in 2010 had reached 136 bln. USD (using the official exchange rate), or 6 700 USD per capita (using PPP estimate, CIA World Factbook).
• The 2010 GDP growth rate is 4,3 percent, the 2011 forecast is up to 5%.
• The external dept of Ukraine is at the level of 25,3% of the GDP, which is below other countries in the region, including:

• the EU countries – 80% on average;
• the Central and Easter Europe countries – 65% on average;
• the CIS countries – 40% on average (IMF data).

• Ukraine is the WTO member since 2008.
• Ukraine has International Agreements for the Avoidance of Double Taxation with 63 countries of the world.
• Ukraine is an active trader on external markets: the total foreign trade (import & export) in 2010 was equal to 103% of the country’s GDP (State Statistics Committee of Ukraine).
• In 2011 it is planned to sign an Association Agreement between Ukraine and EU, which will establish a free trade zone.
• Ukraine has a free trade agreement with Russia.

Agrarian sector.

Agrarian sector is one of the most prospective sectors in Ukraine, generating more than 20% of country’s GDP. Ukraine is in the top five of the largest grain exporters and is the #1 sunflower oil exporter.

Complex machine building.

Ukraine is a traditional leader in production of machinery, cars, and airplanes, and is also one of the six space equipment manufacturing countries in the world.

 Energy.

Ukraine produces about 20 billion m3 of the natural gas per year, and has about 1 000 billion m3 of discovered natural gas reserves. Ukraine has a huge potential for producing energy from renewable sources and implementing energy-saving technologies. Ukraine’s “green” energy tariffs are more attractive than in many other countries.

IT sector.

Ukraine is the 5-th biggest market of the IT outsource services, which is growing at a fastest pace. The market volume had exceeded 1 billion USD in 2010.

Tourism.

Ukraine has huge unrealized tourism potential due to the variety of tourist attractions: ski resorts in the Carpathian Mountains, Crimea, Black Sea beaches, medieval cities and castles, ethnic, music and movie festivals and many others, which attract 20 million tourists annually.