KIEV, Aug. 1 – Belarus, a member of the Moscow-led Customs Union trade bloc, said Thursday it was banning imports of wines from one of the biggest Ukrainian wineries amid alleged concerns over its taste.

KIEV, August 1 – Alfa-Bank (Ukraine), VTB Bank (both based in Kiev) and UkrSibbank (Kharkiv) are asking Prime Minister Mykola Azarov for help in collecting a debt of over $250 million from the AIS Group.

KIEV, July 29 - Fitch Ratings has revised the city of Kiev's Long-term ratings Outlook to Stable from Negative and affirmed its Long-term foreign and local currency ratings at 'B-'.

KIEV, July 29 – The government is planning to develop a number of programs in the housing and utilities sectors worth $700 million aimed at attracting investors for their implementation, Regional Development, Construction and Housing and Utilities Minister Anatoliy Blyzniuk said.

KIEV, Aug. 1 - The population's debt for housing and utilities services in June 2011 fell by 3.3% against May, to UAH 10.709 billion as of the beginning of July, the State Statistics Service reported.

KIEV, July 29 – The National Bank of Ukraine has proposed that the capital of Ukrgasbank and Bank Kiev, which are under control of the government, be increased by the end of this year.

KIEV, July 30 – The companies of the largest private vertically integrated energy holding in Ukraine – DTEK – in January-June 2010 increased coal extraction by 13.4% or by 1.148 million tons year-over-year, to 9.714 million tons.

KIEV, July 30 – Metal prices remain unchanged in the country after the cancellation of a memorandum of mutual understanding signed between the government and mining and metals companies, which awarded some benefits to memo participants, in particular, on cargo shipments by rail, the Industry Ministery reported.

KIEV, July 30 – One of Ukraine's largest food producers, Chumak, has sold the right to produce cooking oil under the Chumak trademark to the Kernel group of companies, one of Ukraine's major oil and fat producers.

KIEV, Aug. 1 – Sales on the secondary real estate market in Kiev in June and July 2007 fell by 2 or 2.5 times year-on-year, Director of Kiev-based RED Ltd. Consulting Company, Illya Rodionov, told Interfax-Ukraine.